Seems like New York State Legislature is trying to make it easier to bring lawsuits against sexual abusers. New York State wants to temporarily lift the statute of limitations for lawsuits alleging the sexual abuse of children.
Religious Leaders Fight N.Y. Bill to Open Abuse
by Lost-In-Translation 10 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
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purplesofa
Good for the NY State Legislature
Good article, thanks for posting.
Welcome to the Board,
purps
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Farkel
:New York State wants to temporarily lift the statute of limitations for lawsuits alleging the sexual abuse of children.
Great! Maybe now they can put that bastard Lot in jail where he belongs!
Farkel
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truthsetsonefree
Wow, I was just going to post this too. We're on top of our stuff here. I say any NY JWs and ex-JWs should start thinking about their pasts and how they could utilize this law if passed. Being a New Yorker I'm willing to help in any way I can.
Isaac
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civicsi00
Bad news for the WT?
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AndersonsInfo
When California temporarily lifted its sexual abuse statute of limitation rule for the entire year in 2003, eventually doing so resulted in nine lawsuits involving sixteen victims of JW molesters being settled by the Watch Tower in February 2007 for approximately $12,500,000.
Yes, if lifting the sexual abuse statute of limitation rule for a year or maybe longer happens in NY , it will be bad news financially for the Watch Tower. And it goes without saying that it will be financially catastrophic for the Catholic Church. If we want to help sex abuse victims to get justice, let's do what we can to encourage the NY legislature to lift the statute of limitations for a bit. It would be much appreciated if anyone who is reading this thread has the time and the inclination, please do the research and find out who we can write to.
Thanks,
Barbara
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purplesofa
Possibly this is the person to contact?
From the article:
********Senator Thomas K. Duane, a Manhattan Democrat and the bill’s lead sponsor in the Senate, said he was “extremely optimistic” about its chances.
He said that opponents’ claims of unfairness were not compelling, and that warnings of bankruptcy for religious institutions, which he dismissed as unlikely, missed the point.
“It’s not about money,” he said. “It’s about giving people the right to seek justice.”********
Where to contact Senator Duane
Thomas K. Duane
Chair, Majority Program Development Committee
29th District
Part of New York County430 State Capitol Building
Albany , New York 12247
518-455-2451
322 Eighth Avenue, Suite 1700
New York , New York 10001
212-633-8052
[email protected] -
purplesofa
I just wrote the senator, I will let you know if I hear anything back from him,
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/12/nyregion/12abuse.html?hp Although I do not live in New York, I would like to know how I can help support this bill. Is there a petition that can be signed online as I would like to get the word out about this. Thank-you, purps
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purplesofa
Thursday Mar 12, 2009
NY Coalition to Protect Children Stop Shielding Sexual Predators, Provide Justice for Victims.
Support the Child Victims Act NYS Assembly Bill A2596 . Senate BillS2568 The Child Victims Act and why we need it.
The Child Victims Act attacks childhood sexual abuse on several fronts. It will expose predators, protect vulnerable children, and help victims. It will make two significant changes to the statutes of limitation for child sexual abuse in New York:
An Extension: The Act extends to age 28 the limitation for a victim to bring a claim. Currently a victim must bring a claim by the age of 23, and rarely are victims strong enough to come forth so soon into adulthood.
A Window: The Act creates a one-year, one time suspension of the current statute of limitations. During this period, adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse may sue the abuser as well as anyone who protected or covered up for the predator—even if the statute of limitations has already expired.
The threat is greater than we think. Predators do not commit a single crime against a single child. They move on to additional generations. Sometimes they infiltrate a family. On average a sexual predator commits over 300 acts on over 100 children in a lifetime. In New York State, there are over 26,000 known convicted predators on a state registry. Given the low rate of reports on abuse to law enforcement, we can only imagine the number of predators still free and the children currently in danger.
How justice has been denied.Childhood sexual abuse is by its nature secret. The abuse is often the end result of a grooming process through which the predators pressures the victim to keep the abuse secret or carefully select victims whom the predator believes will not tell others about the abuse. The predator is usually in a position of power—parent, priest, teacher, etc.--and has power to enforce silence. It's not until the child has gone well into adulthood is he or she able to recover strength and move out from under the sway of the predator. By then the statute of limitations most likely has expired. This leaves the victim frustrated, weakened, and without hope.
What is wrong with the current law?The time period currently allowed by New York law is so short that it ensures that most predators are
not caught, and are not held accountable for their crimes. Predators have an opportunity to “run out the clock” while the victim and family may suffer for a lifetime.
The law also does not reflect current knowledge in the mental health profession, where it is widely understood that victims, with all their trauma, do not have the strength to come forth publicly with their claims until they are well into adulthood. By then, the current limitation has often expired. When predators are not held accountable, they are more likely to continue to sexually abuse other children.
The window offers an opportunity for justice to those who were denied their day in court because of the current short statute of limitations. Equally important, it offers justice to those who were denied in previous years when little was known about the scope of child sexual abuse, and when predators and insensitive institutions could more readily intimidate and silence victims.
What about criminal prosecution?Most child molesters are not prosecuted in criminal court because their victims are too young and confused to realize they are being harmed by an abuser, and most predators can successfully silence victims through intimidation. By the time the victims are old enough and strong enough to testify in court, the criminal statute of limitations has expired, and a civil suit is the only option.
The Child Victims Act, however, can be helpful in putting predators behind bars. First, it can help simply by exposing a predator who is still abusing within the statute of limitations. Second, once a predator is exposed, other victims often come forward. Third, as civil cases proceed in the discovery process, new information that comes to light may be sufficient for prosecutors to bring indictments.
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purplesofa
I wrote this lady too, Margaret Markey.
I am interested in doing what I can to make sure this bill gets passed. The Watchtower, headquarters for Jehovahs Witnesses has many Child Victims. There are many people interested in writing to whoever we need to contact regarding the passing of this bill. Thank-you, purps