COLORADO
Famiy News in Focus
by Kim Trobee
Focus of the legislation is abuse but public schools are exempt.
Where are your kids more likely to become victims of sexual abuse; at a private school or a public school? Colorado lawmakers have introduced three separate bills targeting private institutions in cases of sexual abuse while leaving public schools virtually untouched. The Catholic Church has been in the news of late because of abuse cases prompting the proposal that some Chancellor Fran Maier with the Archdiocese in Denver says would make the church “vicariously libel” if lawsuits are brought against Catholic teachers.
“We’re not trying to evade responsibility, we just want people to be alert that this is much deeper and the laws should be fair. The average public school teacher who abuses a child is in two to three public schools before he’s caught.”
Sex abuse cases in public schools are also all over the news. Researcher Charol Shakeshaft at Hofstra University estimates the abuse in public schools to be “100 times more likely than abuse by priests.” Judith Reisman with the Institute for Media Education has an idea why.