The problem is not "the two witness rule". The problem is that they view it as a sin instead of as a crime. It is rape of a child. The problem is that they don't report it as a crime or encourage the parents to do so. They don't need a 2nd witness to do that. Who cares if the guy is df'd or not? Who cares if he ends up on a secret list up in NY? They'll never give up the 2 witness rule as they hold the bible as their highest power above any common sense.
If they would report every instance of child abuse, then the abusers would be properly investigated and the abused could get actual help by those trained for such problems. They would also get their "2nd witness" in many cases as prior letters to the boe state that the physical evidence can be the 2nd witness. More abusers would be df'd. But honestly I would rather that the abusers be turned in to the authorities so that they could be put on the national sexual predator list. I'd prefer that over the abuser being df'd. Then parents could easily check the list to see if any in their congregation were on that list.
The media and most here are attacking the wrong policy. Instead of attacking the "two witness" policy, attack the "call the legal department first" policy. Attack the "we report where required" policy. Those policies need to change. Then the "two witness" rule would have very little impact on the outcome of child abuse cases.
