an investigation, resulting in a sudden increase of allegations. More than a dozen persons, including five police officers from two different forces, were ultimately charged with more than 100 charges associated with participating with a Satanic cult named The Brotherhood of The Ram, which allegedly practiced ritualized sexual abuse of numerous children at a "Devil Church". The son of the day-care owner was tried and found guilty, then a Royal Canadian Mounted Police task force assumed control of the investigation. It concluded the original investigation was motivated by "emotional hysteria". During 2003, defendants sued for wrongful prosecution. In 2004, Richard and Kari Klassen received $100,000 each, out of the $1.5 million compensation awarded for the malicious prosecution. See also Child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome False allegation of child sexual abuse False memories The Hunt (2012) Moral panic Pizzagate conspiracy theory Repressed memory Salem witch trials Witch hunt Outreau trial Documentaries Capturing the Friedmans, controversial 2003 documentary Freeing Bernie Baran, 2010 documentary on one of the earliest cases Indictment: The McMartin Trial, 1995 HBO docudrama Witch Hunt, 2008 documentary produced and narrated by Sean Penn, about the Kern County child abuse cases Notes Further reading Abuse Satanic ritual abuse Crowd psychology Mass psychogenic illness Scares Overturned convictions in the United States 1980s in the United States 1990s in the United States