Sex Abuse Double Standard

Bromwell has introduced
legislation that would suspend the statute of
limitations on child sexual abuse cases for almost
two years. It would allow alleged victims to sue
the predator and the organization where the abuser
worked. The bill, however, does not apply to
public institutions, which are subject to less
punitive measures.

Catholic League president
Bill Donohue spoke against the proposed
legislation today:

“Unlike some lawmakers in
other states who have sought to penalize private
[read: Catholic] schools while giving public
schools a pass, Delegate Bromwell appears to have
benign motives. But he is wrong on the issue
nonetheless. It is simply intolerable to allow one
set of penalties for private institutions and
another for public institutions. If protecting
students is the goal, then justice demands that
all institutions be treated equally. It is
mind-boggling to think that a young person who was
previously abused by a public school teacher
should be afforded less justice than a neighbor
who was molested by a Catholic school
teacher.

“This bill
should either be amended to blanket all
institutions equally or withdrawn altogether. To
discriminate on the basis of religion—even if it
is not the intent of the legislation—is
indefensible. We are contacting the House
Judiciary Committee about this
issue.”

Kiera McCaffrey is the director of Communications for the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights.