wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

I am 31 yrs of age and always new some thing bad had happened. After seeing a therapist, I come to realize the depth of my rape and molestation! Being clinically depressed and having to live on antidepressants and axiety/panic pills, was not a life I chose!!! I have been told it's past the statue of limitation and now I feel I have to suffer his consequences because I had protected myself and suppress that part of my life for so long!!! How is this fair to any survivor????

As a survivor of sexual assault, I did not even speak up until 12 years after the fact, my memory and self-esteem clouded by what was diagnosed as post-traumatic stress disorder. Now, 23 years after being raped, I finally feel safe enough, with enough self-integrity, to speak about what happened. And, only this year, I remembered the name of the only non-implicated witness after meeting again on facebook. The statute of limitations for rape cases in Ohio is 20 years. The burden that I carried and suffered for in my life 23.

PS sexual abuse it like PTSD - it is very very deep and not adequately understood - hard to get helped. SO UNFAIR!!!

The Catholic church is so hard-assed they will never acknowledge the meaning of this pain. But that doesn't mean they should get a walk. I think it's too bad that their stubbornness destroys all the good things they have built and done for society - think of all the educations kids will miss out on, all the good hospitals they have built, staffed and run the world over, the fine colleges and universities, the sense of community created in its parishes. It is really a triple shame - shame for the perpetration, shame carried by the children, shame of this huge loss to the rest of us. There should be NO statute of limitations on childhood sexual abuse prosecution.

As much of the abuse of children happened as a result of cover-up on the part of institutions, those same institutions should not be allowed to escape the consequences of their decision(s) to protect the institution rather than the victims. The claim that further lawsuits would bankrupt and otherwise ruin the good works of the institution is a smokescreen. We need this legislation. There is no limit on the pain of victims; there should be no limit on their right to redress.

I don't see how it's fair to change the statute of limitations retrospectively. If they change it, it should hold from here into the future.

Let's grow up!
Many persons appear to want to protect their religion, profession, or ethnicity from this ugly problem. Some want to label it the priest problem. This is scapegoating a very BIG issue to one group. Legislation should encompas religious leaders across the board, professions like dentists, teachers, medical doctors, attorneys etc and let the accusations & money follow appropriately. Legislation should be inclusive of victims in the public and private sector.

A horrific a crime, child abuse should absolutely be prosecuted, but I feel the statue of limitations has a real purpose. It is highly unlikely that truth, justice and fairness be served 40 or 50 years after the fact. Listeners should be aware of the fact that victims of any representative of the Catholic Church can request help dealing with
this trauma, regardless of time lapse. But if this bill does pass, it should include ALL cases, not only those related to religious groups. And why not consider lifting the statute for all victims of any traumatic crimes? Are they any less effected?

I believe there should be no time limit - it can take a long long time for a person to come to the place where they are able to take action - and it is a horrible crime - akin in my opinion to murder - which has no statute.

ONE YEAR?!!! ONE YEAR?!!! This bill has been amended to allow a window of ONE YEAR?!!! for public employees, such as school teachers, to be sued?!!! Public school teachers have a higher rate of child abuse incidents than clergy and yet this bill has been amended to allow law suits against them for ONE YEAR?!!! Is this obscene, or what?!!! The Assembly is putting the teachers' unions ahead of the children who have been abused by predatory teachers. It is despicable that victims have exactly ONE YEAR to file their lawsuits against these sleaze bags. Do not try tell me that this hypocritical bill is not aimed at clergy. If lawmakers REALLY give a damm, they will ensure that victims can sue ANYONE for the SAME period of time. Otherwise, these children are just being abused a second time. And that's the definition of DISGUSTING!!!

Far too many victims of child abuse, be it sexual or psychological, endure a lifetime sentence.
Why limit the period of time for which the perpetrators of these most malevolent of acts can be punished?
They cruelly destroy the most helpless and fragile in society while enjoying positions of trust -- even reverence!

The statute of limitations absolutely should NOT be extended. There is sound legal reasoning behind the establishment of the statute. The practical effect of the law will not be to punish actual offenders but rather to open the door to hundreds of lawsuits that must be defended or settled at high cost, regardless of their actual merits. Subjecting private institutions to such cases thirty or forty years after the alleged events is iniquitous and, frankly, looks a lot like persecution.

There should not be any limits to the statute of limitation in these cases because even though some of the perpetrators are deceased, their superiors should be held accountable for shielding them.
Also remember that, particularly with church victims, many were, and still are, vilified by their community.
I have relatives who do not believe that the two priests in their parish are guilty of any crimes even after one was indicted(a lawyer) and the other settled for $25000.

Regarding the abuse scandal I would just like to address anyone who has been violated by the Catholic Church in saying 'If someone has stolen your innocence and you want it back, be innocent, and you will have it back and you will never loose it again.'

I was a victim of a predator priest. A few years after the abuse he "left the priesthood." The church did nothing to contact victims or any children associated with him. The church releases no information about these predators. This is one reason for passage of this bill. Discovery in the courts is essential to holding those responsible to task and ensuring that events like these DO NOT HAPPEN to other innocents.

Brian,
The Child Victims Act bill is about JUSTICE, not money. The Catholic Church, so far, has spent $2.5 BILLION dollars to keep victims quiet and on out-of-court settlements that would keep church records secret. It should be noted that NO diocese in California, or anywhere else, went bankrupt due to the lifting of the statute of limitations and the approval of a "Window" legislation. Also, listeners should know that 400 abusers were identified as a result of the Window legislation that was passed in California.
Carol Bongiorno

Magnificent!
As Gabrielle [from brooklyn] states that the child who is a victim of abuse "should be given until they are 30 years of age to press charges and/or report with consequences for the perpetrator.I have patients whom I see who have been sexually abused."
Actually, as a therapist, sometimes it takes MUCH longer for individuals to actually face what was done to them. In order to speak about it, the patient needs to feel safe. I have seen many situations where the vicitims do not realize what was done to them until the abuser dies. In this way, they can face what was done, but they do not have to confront the abuser.

Why any age limit at all?

Isn't it sad that one of the major institutions that helps people find their moral framework is working hardest now to *prevent* people from the help, solace, and justice they deserve? Preventing those who suffered from child abuse from seeking justice, preventing those who love each other from getting married ... Terribly sad.

As for the argument that those who alleged committed the sexual abuse being dead after a certain point, making lawsuits moot: Hasn't part of the problem been that not only have *individuals* been guilty but the *institutions* they're part of being guilty? The policies, explicit as well as implicit, that the church move priests around rather than hand them off to criminal prosecution; the schools that turned blind eyes to teacher behavior? Those institutions deserve bankruptcy, if that's what results, and if need be should rebuild.

The issue is justice.
Justice should not be withheld from alleged victims because it inconveniences alleged perpetrators. Details about lawsuits can be worked out to spare catastrophic financial consequences.
But Justice first, then the details!

One reason there's a statute of limitations is that it gets harder to pursue the truth with more time passing.

Asking someone to defend themselves regarding actions 40 years in the past very burdensome, especially if they are now 70 or 80!

My impression is that the hierarchy of the Catholic Church particularly has steadfastly suppressed any news of sexual abuse by priests so why should the Church -- which has effectively abetted some of these cases -- be immune to bankruptcy?

And why should there be a statue of limitations at all? Abuses of this kind leave extraordinarily deep psychological scars. Memories can be suppressed for decades. A plaintiff would still have to do more than provide mere hearsay.

The Catholic Church must acknowledge its moral obligation to support past survivors of abuse, before it begins talking about financial impact of that obligation. Bishop DiMarizio of Brooklyn only talks about the threat of bankruptcy. He does not acknowledge the obligation the Church has to help past victims.

what about religious cults where young girls are forced to marry when they're very young?? why doesn't anybody ever do something about sexual abuse of young girls in religious cults in this country?? one guy from a religious cult (you know, one of those delusional so-called "prophets") was convicted a few years ago, but are there any other cases of abuse in religious cults even being investigated by the authorities??

and YES, the statute of limitations should be extended big-time (as Morgenthau himself has said, now with DNA technology there's no reason not too..)

Of course the standard bearer of morals, the RC church, is against this. Back to the cesspools, there are so many of them around today.

There absolutely should NOT be statute of limitations when it comes to child abuse and other abuses be they psychological or physical

not sure what the law says now but i think the child who is the victim should be given until they are 30 years of age to press charges and/or report with consequences for the perpetrator. i think it takes a fair amount of time for a child of sexual abuse to process and come to terms with what had happened to them. it shouldn't be marked in years from the abuse but in the age of the victim.