alison: father william aitcheson. he recently wrote a letter reflecting on his time in the k.k.k. and then announced he is taking a leave of absence. now one couple who saw a cross burning in their yard years ago wants to meet with him. jonathan: richard reeve spoke with him. rich? richard: yeah, phillip and barbara butler say they can certainly forgive but they can't forget. it was in this college park neighborhood all these years ago back in 1977. when a neighbor called them and said you have a cross burning in your front yard. now they say they want to sit down, have a face-to-face meeting with the priest who has confessed to doing this. the butlers speaking to reporters with the attorney say they want to ask father william aitcheson why he did come to the house and do this. two days ago he confessed in a first person account he was a k.k.k. member and called the actions depickable. at the time -- despicable. at the time he was a 23-year-old maryland student identified as part of the k.k.k. lodge. he was charged with cross burning, count of making bomb threat and two count of m

>>reporter: the did i ease of arlington says believe it or not , father william aitcheson who you see here wasn't forced to speak out or step down in this case. in light of the all of the recent hate and turmoil he felt his dark past was something he needed to share with the public. keep in mind here, father aitcheson wasn't just a member of the queue cluks clan, he was one of the local leaders. he committed many hate ful crimes. forty years ago william aitcheson was the leader of a local maryland chapter of the can you cluks clan, the exawlted sigh c specific. this particular head of the queue clocks plan he had also planned on fire bombing northwestern high school. according to fbi documents we obtained during the late 1970s police say he burned crosses in front of several homes of african-american families around prince george's county. he even made numerous threats to correspond receipt a scott king, the widow of the late dr. martin luther king, jr. one of those cryptic letters seen here reads, quote, africa a or death by lynching. take your pick. we're told he even planned to bom

. >> good morning, guys, father william aitcheson has been a priest at st. leo the great since 2014 and he's publicly confessing to a dark past riding in standard he says in his younger days he was a member of kkk and writes he was impressionable young man and apologizes nor hrz past saying to anyone subjected to racism or bigotry i'm sorry i have no excuse and hope you forgive me. he continues "my actions are despicable. which i think back on burning crosses a threatening letter and so on, i feel as though i'm speaking of someone else. it is hard to believe that was me."aitcheson says he was come spelled to write the article after bringing back memories after i bleak period. he would like to forget. he encourages them to find peace and mercy in god. arlington dioceses bishop responded to the article saying "while father aitcheson past with trouble i pray in political and social climate his message will reach those that support hate ape and insbir them to conversion of heart. father aitcheson has taken a voluntary leave of absence from his church. at this po

michelle: 40 years ago father william aitcheson helped burn a cross at a couple in lodge park and now they are speaking out how to gain forgiveness. you richard reeve is live and you have been on this since the beginning. >> phillip and barbara butler say they can forgive but they they want to meet with the priest to ask why he did it. >> a big cross. >> they have never forgotten the burning, the smoldering cross one like this in their front yard. >> i have never seen a cross. you see it on television. >> 11 years before being ordained as a priest, william aitcheson was a maryland student and he had been identifieded as exhausted cyclops, leader of k.k.k. lodge. >> we thought if he didn't know anything about us, who sent you. why did you come? >> he would later be charged with the cross burning, making the bomb threat and manufacturerring the pipe bomb. he served 90 days in jail. all of this decades before the first person account on monday admitting publicly he was a k.k.k. member. the statement triggered by the white supremacist violence in char

we've made several attempts to contact father william aitcheson. his silence has made it clear he doesn't want to be found. one of the african-american families target ed by aitcheson suffered his hatred acts including a cross burning on their front lawn. tonight they asked not to appear on camera until they sought legal counsel and he when askedded 40 years later they had for given aitcheson they still had no answer. the catholic church has remained siel lint with only a public statement, sad and deeply troubling. fox5 has continued to dig and has uncovered disturbing details about aitcheson's past. the de come positioned exielings by the fbi. anonymous letters to his widow correspond receipt a scott king days before her scheduled appearance athe late 1970s. letters present which the fbi recovered fingerprints and eventually tied back to william aitcheson, then a junior and the leader of the k kk lodge at umd threatening letters spelled out with cutouts saying stay off the university of maryland campus or you will die. another one read, after frik

. >> maureen, holly, as many of you know father william aitcheson made revelations about troubled past through off ed piece published days ago in the catholic herald and he's taken a leave of absence and most recent post was right here st. leo the great in fairfax virginia join the church in 9 and took the leave of absence after exposing his past life as a leader of kkk lodge at umd. since then we made several attempts to spoke with father aitcheson and have not heard back. however we tracked done a family we spoke to yesterday. they did not want to be identified and may speak out later with details. they are one of the african-american families targeted by aitcheson in the 19 70s and suffered hateful acts including cross purposing on front lawn an couple tells us they're owed civil damages from aitcheson and after 40 years they still don't know they can forgive him for what happened. fbi documents "fox5" obtained from the light 70s reveal father aitcheson burned crosses in front of several homes of african-american homes and made paid numerous threats to coretta scott king threatening

. >> 11 years before being ordained as a priest, william aitcheson was a maryland student and he had been identifieded as exhausted cyclops, leader of k.k.k. lodge. >> we thought if he didn't know anything about us, who sent you. why did you come? >> he would later be charged with the cross burning, making the bomb threat and manufacturerring the pipe bomb. he served 90 days in jail. all of this decades before the first person account on monday admitting publicly he was a k.k.k. member. the statement triggered by the white supremacist violence in char >> he needs to give up other klans men or women. who was involved in putting that cross on the butler's property? >> the butlers later won $23,000 in damages. >> father forgive them, they know not what they do. but you did know what you did. >> the butters will met with president reagan in 1982 and it was a national story. the die see cease does want to meet with the family -- diocese wants to meet with the family and they say they will figure out how to pay the $23,000. the father says he is willing to sit down with the police to tell

>>reporter: the did i ease of arlington says believe it or not , father william aitcheson who you seeasn't forced to speak out or step down in this case. in light of the all of the recent hate and turmoil he felt his dark past was something he needed to share with the public. keep in mind here, father aitcheson wasn't just a member of the queue cluks clan, he was one of the local leaders. he committed many hate ful crimes. forty years ago william aitcheson was the leader of a local maryland chapter of the can you cluks clan, the exawlted sigh c

father william aitcheson. >> if he is willing to come forward, and confess, that he was a member of the klan 23 years ago, this same priest now should be willing to tell the public who all was with him. >> according to a new statement from the diocese of arlington, father aitcheson agrees with the attorney, and will cooperate fully with law enforcement agents. he's also open to a private meeting with the butler family to finally offer an apology for his crime. >>> the confederate statue in charlottesville nearly two weeks ago, has some in fredericksburg debating a piece of history there. some say this slave auction block should be moved to a museum. others say it should stay right where it is. historians admit, it does bring up a painful part of american history. >> the horrible component of it is to remember he the extent that we can go in anger, and in hatred, amend how can we do better? >> fredericksburg city council members hope to hold several meetings before deciding how to proceed. >>> an overnight report from the wall street journal appears to give us information on the proposed

we've made repeatedly attempts to contact william aitcheson, but for now he has made it clear he doesn't want to be found. one of the african-merican targeted by aitcheson suffered a cross burping on their front lawn. they're still owed civil cam yes, sir sphr aitcheson and tonight they asked not to appear on camera until they sought legal counsel and when we asked if 40 years later they for gave aitcheson they had no answer. the catholic church only calling it, quote, sad and deeply troubling. fox5 has continued to dig and has uncovered disturbing details of aitcheson's past. the de classified documents compiled pie the fbi detail his numerous letters to doctor martin luther king. a letter before her scheduled appearance at the university of maryland in the late 1970s, letters from which the fbi recovered fingerprints and eventually tied back to aitcheson, then a junior and the leader of the kkk lodge at ud threatening letters which spelled out cutouts saying stay off the university of maryland campus or you you will die. another letter read after frik a or death by lynching take your p

"fox5" that revealed william aitcheson was responsible for the crime and convicted as misdemeanor in the terror. butch lor's sued aitcheson for what he did he was to pay them,000 in restitution and never got that money or polyfrom the priest. >> i wept to the door and it was like wow. really where did this come from. >> what did you do to put [ inaudible ] cross in the yard. father aitcheson knows he deservesive got family an apology and we meet up with them. >> covering larger -- coming two days after city council umentsly voted to cover many people watching cheered which was completely covered and dad vote cae with me ron. >> one counter protester died. >> i feel like we should do a drum hol roll the winning numbers for powerball is 6, 7, 16, 23, 26, powerball is number 4. again those are winning numbers on your screen, 6, 7, 16, 23, 26, powerball is 4. >> lauren demarco live in l lez. any cheering or winners there perhaps or quiet. snoot here, they're about to close upshot and i have our list and looking through our tickets to see if we have anything in the "fox5" poll. ha seeing

. >> maryland couple terrorized 40 years ago by father william aitcheson say they are still waiting for a personal apology. in 197793 found a burning cross on their yard in college park. fox5 found documents that revealed aitcheson was responsible for that crime. he was convicted of a misdemeanor and butler sued aitcheson for what he d the priest was ordered to pay them $23,000 in restitution. they say they never got that money or even an apology from the priest. >> i went to the door and i saw it and it was just like, wow, you know, where did this come from? >> what did we do to put -- for him to put a cross in our yard. >> the arlington archdiocese says the father is open to meeting with them. >> turning to the latest from charlottesville. a white nationalist who pepper sprayed someone a day before the dead technological charlottesville protest has turned himself in. christopher cant well s self-defense. he faces three felony charges including using tear gas illegally. >>> crews in charlottesville covered up two controversial statues with large tarps. the statue of robert e. lee in em

william aitcheson , was once a member of the ku klux klan and described his spiritual transformationlumn published this week in the arlington catholic herald. in the piece, father aitcheson says he was a klan member 40-years-ago as a college student. he also warns current white supremacists that they will find not fulfillment in that ideology. reaction to the confession was one of surprise-- and forgiveness. father aitcheson has taken a leave of absence. the diocese says it learned about father aitcheson's involvement with the klan back in 19-93... along with his quote "sincere conversion of the heart". it seems that in hollywood-- it pays to be a tough guy. mark wahlberg is best-paid actor in the business according to forbes magazine. wahlberg reportedly made 68-millon dollars between last june and this june. last year's champ, dwayne johnson, fell to second place with 65-million dollars. and coming in third, the rock's fast and furious teammate, vin diesel. he earned 54-and-a-half million dollars. happening today-- ten barbers are volunteering their time, to make sure kids look goo

this is william aitcheson who temporarily stepped down as his role as catholic priest. aitcheson admits to burning a cross on the lawn of a newlywed couple. he even pleaded -- pleaded guilty of charges to threatening on killing loretta king. they received no charges of racism. >>> a landmark restaurant that sava business. it's the shrimp boat plaza on benning road in northeast. the new owner met with ward 7 leaders to discuss what would best serve the community. they settled on an all-in-one contest. donuts, ice cream, coffee, breakfast, lunch, dinner. you can even get a cell phone there. customers are excited. >> it's historic to us. >> it's better than the old one. >> the owner has more plans. first adding some customer seating and later to open an adjacent grocery store that sells fresh food at affordable prices. he's applying for a city grant to make it happen. >>> a story that came into my facebook page over the weekend. more than 1,500 shares and growing, but is it real? a woman named crystal ann venting on facebook about a happy meal she bought at a mcdonald's in

. >> reporter: 62-year-old william aitcheson made the confession in this essay published monday writingy action were despicable. while 40 have passed i must say this, soim sorry. but church officials say his statement came after a reporter began asking questions, and that's when "he acknowledged his past and saw the opportunity to tell his story." after his arrest decades ago, his racist offenses became front-page news, partly because he had threatened the life of dr. martin luther king judiciary's life, coretta scott king, and because president reagan visited two of his victims, the but lers. >> there shouldn't be any place in our country for that sort of ring. >> reporter: today, a spokesman for the arlington diocese said: the church has accepted his offer to temporarily step away from the public ministry and says he would like to meet with the butler family privately. they say that won't happen until he reveals who helped him burn the cross on their lawn. >> i will never, ever forgive that. we didn't deserve this. no one sterves this. >> reporter: now, a federal judge ordered aitchso

father william aitcheson says the violence in charlottesville made him reflect on his past. is priest for the past 29 years said in a letter to parishioners that he thinks back on burning crosses 40 years ago. parishioners say they want him to return. >>> a rally is planned outside of nfl headquarters in new york in support of quarterback colin kaepernick. the football star still hasn't been signed to a team. critics believe the league is blackballing him for expressing his political views. kaepernick made a habit of kneeling during the national anthem last year during the treatment of african-americans particularly in the shootings of unarmed people. he has since stopped kneeling but the action goes on. on monday 12 members of the cleveland browns took a knee and the largest nfl protest since kaepernick started the trend last year. >> the stars aligned on monday when a woman who was born during an eclipse gave birth to her baby during another eclipse. clara getler says she and her husband didn't expect it to happen. their baby was a few days late. they're already thinking a

stated william aitcheson never apologized for a burning crost.ave of absence. errol barnett is live with more. >> he was serving here until monday when he revealed his former membership in the kkk explaining that events in charlottesville prompted him to say he is sorry. the diocese says actually an inquiry by a freelance journalist really prompted the revelation. >> saying he was a priest, i didn't know what to say. >> reporter: philip and barbara butler are reliving that moment 40 years ago when they discovered a cross burning on their front lawn. >> i went to the door and i saw it and it was just like where did this come from. >> reporter: it william aitcheson. the catholic priest confessed to being a leader of the kkk in his early 20s. while 40 years have passed i must say this, i'm sorry. >> this has been years and we have never heard one word or anything and all of a sudden like a shock. >> reporter: the diocese said there have been no accusations of racism or bigotry against him throughout his time in the diocese. the diocese reportedly kn

. >> 62-year-old william aitcheson made the confession in the essay published monday. writing my actions were despicable. while 40 years passed i must say this. i'm sorry. adding that images from charlottesville brought back memories of a bleak my life that i would have preferred to forget. but church officials say his statement came after a reporter began asking questions. that's when, he acknowledged his past and saw the opportunity to tell his story. after his arrest, decades ago, aitcheson's racist offenses became front-page news because he threatened the life of dr. martin luther king jr.'s wife, core ita scott king and because president reagan visited two of his victims the butlers. >> shouldn't be any place in our country for that sort of thing. >> today a spokesman for arlington diocese, at the time he began ministry here in 1993, the diocese learned of his past as well as his sincere conversion of heart. but the spokesman says, his past was not common knowledge to current staff, 24 years later. the church accepted his offer to temporarily to step away from the

jonathan: for decades, father william aitcheson served as a priest but before that he was an admitted klansman, a ebb many of the k.k.k. he is taking a leave of absence. we have an explanation from the church. >> people here are shocked. he has been with the arlington diocese since 1998. a lot of folks didn't even know about this. in the newspaper he said the images from the recent violence of charlottesville brought back memory of his early life that he would have preferred to forget. he says as a young man in his 20's he was a member of we don't know how long that was. father aitcheson is now 64 years old. he asks for forgiveness and apologizes to anyone who suffered racism. he says he asked for and received a temporary leave of absence. >> i wouldn't hold it against him. >> just accept it for what it is. that is it. ask for forgiveness. >> there have been no accusations of the racism or bigotry against the father in his time here. coming up at 6:00, the father in his own words and what the church members think he should do. in fairfax, richard reeve, abc7 news. jonathan: more t hur

track done a family in american saying they're one of the african-american families targeted by william aitcheson 40 years ago and they hope this public confession is one year closer to closure. since his public confession father aitcheson has developed we can tell you that the family says that they were part of his hateful acts including cross burning on front lawn and they'll still ordered civil dams from aitcheson. we have not heard back. but we did get our hands on declassified fbi documents from the late 70s that reveal father aitcheson burned crosss in front of several homes of african-american families in prince george county and made threats to coretta scott king widow of doctor martin luther king jr. threatening to kill her if she spoke at umd. despite hateful actions aitcheson took against the community a anybody of the naacp tells us he can only forgive him. take a listen. >> he should not hide. i think he needs to come out and let his experience be known. because tlooz a lot of people especially young people who recruited and ku klux klan at young age. they don't know any better. unle

father william aitcheson is serving here at the catholic church off old lehigh way.he arlington catholic herald, he writes that he was prompted to reveal his own ties with the kkk after the violence in charlottesville. also we're hearing from two of his victims, philip and barbara butl butler. they found a burning cross in their yard back in mrs. butler says it was a painful moment that changed their lives in a single night. >> just got married. all of a sudden this happens. the neighborhood has changed. each at our jobs and just everything added to it. you know, just don't know -- [ inaudible ] >> reporter: father aitcheson is now on leave from his duties here at st. leo owe the butlers say they are due a $23,000 restitution from aitcheson. the archdiocese is working with him to make the payments. back to you in the studio. >> justin finch, thank you. >>> 5:50 your time right now. we're helping you get ready for school this morning. the kids in loudoun county, time to get up. we'll soon hear the first alarms of the school year buzzing all across that county. more th

father william aitcheson is on leave from his duties at st.leo the great -- off old lehigh this all comes to light as his kkk past has come to light here as well. we're also hearing this week from two of his victims. philip and barbara butler who say they found one of aitcheson's burning crosses on their college park lawn. almost 40 years ago. the memory still haunts them, four decades later. >> of what's going on. your family, you know. i can't say that i was mad or i was afraid. all of it was involved. >> reporter: the butlers say they are still waiting aitcheson to pay them the court ordered $23,000 in damages. they also say if he is truly sorry, he will more than likely out the rest of his that cross burning or in the other cases that he acted alone. back to you in the studio. >> justin finch, thank you. >>> 6:35 right now. two words can have a deep impact on your wallet and keep you up at night. government shutdown. >> it could happen in just one month if president trump doesn't get his way. news 4's erika gonzalez is in the newsroom with

this is where father william aitcheson was serving since '93. they had a 9:00 a.m. mass taking place underway now. we are told no accusations of racism or bigotry were made against him throughout his time in the dye seiss of arlington it's important to mention he voluntarily stepped down from public ministry here. now, fox5 again has tracked down a family who says they were targeted 40 years ago by father aitcheson. they say they suffer his hateful acts including a cross burning on their front lawn. the couple says they're still owed self damages and hope this closer to getting closures as well as healing, but they were very honest and admit even after all these years they're not sure if they can forgive him for what he did. now, the familiar dull not want to be identified, but, again, later this afternoon, we will learn more as they share their details publicly. men while, they are not the only ones who were terrorized 40 years ago. we obtained declassified fbi documents that you're looking at now from the late '70's that reveal father aitcheson burned crosses in f

arlington catholic diocese confirms to news4 that a freelance reporter was about to expose father william aitcheson before he came clean. the priest claimed he was moved to come forward by the violence in charlottesville this month. in an article, he admitted to cross burnings at homes in howard and prince george's county back in the 1970s. one couple that he targeted didn't buy his apology in the article. they say if father aitcheson was really sorry, he would name the people who helped him carry out his crimes. >> as big as that cross was, he needed help to put that cross up on the ground. >> he is on a leave of absence from st. leo the great in fairfax. he's been working in the arlington diocese for decades. the church was aware of his past. >>> new this morning, it's too bad they don't pave marble. take a look at is this crash from this morning. a truck spilled sheets of marble in the median and it all had to get picked up. chopper 4 was over route 15 in frederick county just south of the park and ride. we don't know exactly what caused the crash but maryland state police tell us the driver is

a maryland couple terrorized 40 years ago by father william aitcheson says that they're waiting for personalara butler say in 1977 they found a burning cross on their lawn in college park. fox5 found fbi documents that reveal aitcheson was responsible for this crime. he was convicted of a misdemeanor for that crime. the butlers sued him and -- for what he did. $23,000 in restitution. they say they never got that money or even an apology from the priest. >> looked out the door and i saw it and it was just like, why, where did this come from? >> what did we do to put -- to have a cross put in our yard? >> the arlington archdiocese issued a statement saying that the priest acknowledges the butlers deserve an apology and is open to meeting with them but the butlers' attorney say his clients are not interested unless he gives up the names of other klansmen. >>> scary moments in the district after a child had to be rescued from a safe. d.c. fire and ems they say a woman and her child were in a cell phone store on pennsylvania avenue in southeast when the child wandered off somehow got locked insid

father william aitcheson burned a cross on the family's lawn back in 1977 when he was a kkk leader inrbara butler say they're still waiting for a personal apology from aitcheson and for $23,000 that he was ordered to pay them in restitution. >> forced to vacate. an entire condo building in temple hills maryland is empty this morning after the fire marshal deemed the building unsafe to live in. >> nearly a hundred residents were only given one day's notice to pack up and get out. fox5's annie yu live in the lynnhill condos with more on this ongoing story. annie. >> reporter: wisdom and holly, the units here at the lynnhill condominiums were deemed unfit, unsafe for the nearly 100 residents that occupied the two buildings on this side and if you look, prince george's county police they continue to be on site. overnight and will continue over the next few days because we are told that between 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. starting today residents can come back and pick up their belongings and so on but you do need to provide a valid i.d. and proof of residency. now, yesterday was the deadline

father william aitcheson and good and honorable man and no doubt his confession shocked many. he's confessing to a dark past. riding in arlington catholic hair old he apollizes for his past saying to anyone subjected to racism or bigotry i'm sorry i have no excuse i in article titled moving from thit love and fall from grace. >> when i think back on threatening letter and burring crosses and so on i feel like i'm speaking of someone else it is hard to believe that is me. his past is public record according to washington post archives he was leader recreational vehicle mar kkk lodge charged with cross burnings at north western high school and sin dog and university of maryland adult education center and two private homes. he was also charged with manufacturing pipe bombs that authorities say were planned for five locations including for the immediate and prince george county naacp offices. aitcheson said he was compelled tory the editorial after hate rallies brought back memyes of bleak period. we would like to forget he encouraged him like he find piece and murcy from got. >>

. >> before william aitcheson renowned his kkk past and joined the priesthood he was convict evidencening a cross outside of a maryland home in college park. darrell davis reach out to his parents offering to help sh their son all these years later davis is still at it. he's credited with getting dozens of former white supreme mists to renounce their past and give up their hatred. he's the subject of an inned pend documentary. he is currently updating his book clandestine relations and he is joining us now talk about his life's work. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> good morning. what a dangerous work you've chosen to take on. >> well, you know, i haven't found it too dangerous every now and then i have a couple encounter thursday a little n nass, too but for most part, it's been a pretty, um, pretty calm on both sides have learned something my side and their side. >> always starts with conversation. >> absolutely. >> talking. i want to talk -- talk about the big picture in a minute the focus right now this week has been on this priest. i know you reached out to his family some 40

up private meeting bet bishop michael burr bitch and a priest once a member of the kkk father william aitchesond a cross on the family's law lawn in 1977 when he was a kkk leader in prince george's county. philip and barbara butler are waiting for a personal apology from aitcheson and for $23,000 that he was ordered to pay them in restitution. earlier this morning, darryl davis author of the book clandestine relationings joined us in studio he reached out to aitcheson parents after he was convinced all those years ago offering to help their son. now, davis credited with getting dons says of former white supremacists to renounce their past and give up hate tread. he had advice for how father aitcheson could help the butlers heal. >> i would say he should meet with them and talk with them and bring closure to this, and if there's anything that he owes them, then, you know, make them whole. >> um-hmm. >> but dialogue is the key, and that's where it needs to start. down and talk with them and also as priest, he is responsible for his flock. and talk to his flock about it. because there are people i

william has been priests here at st. leo great church in fairfax city and now publicly confessing to a dark past riding arlington catholic harold father aitcheson said he was a member of the writes impressionable young man. i have no excuse and i hope you forgive me he continues my actions are despicable when i think back on burning crosses i feel i'm speaking of someone else. >> he was compelled to write the article after rallies brought back a bleak period. he wajts to forgets. michael reresponsibilityed to the article saying while father's past with the kkk is sad and troubling his message will reach those that supports ate and division and inspire them to conversion of heart. father aitcheson has taken a voluntary leave of abscess and mentioned in his writing his past was public record. we discovered "washington post" archive that talks about some of these cross burnings in 1977 at northwestern high school beth tore synagogue university park home and university maryland adult education center and he was leader of local university maryland kkk lodge they were planning on bombing four facilities and naacp offices. "new york times" says this t