BishopAccountability.org
	The Goal: Justice Milwaukee Journal Sentinel October 29, 2009 http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/67334892.html Wisconsin victims of childhood sexual abuse deserve the justice that the Child Victims Act would provide. On a 6-2 vote, the Assembly Committee on Children and Families approved this week a measure that would help victims of childhood sexual abuse get a piece of their soul back, as one advocate put it. The bill would allow past victims to sue their assailants for damages, something many of those victims can't do now. The bill, the Child Victims Act, deserves the same kind of vote in the full Assembly and Senate. At a public hearing on the bill last week, the Journal Sentinel's Annysa Johnson reported, victims and child safety advocates voiced support for the bill, calling the existing statute of limitations arbitrary and saying many factors conspire to keep victims silent. The bill would apply to all abuse cases, most of which involve family members, neighbors and family friends. The bill would have an impact on the Catholic Church, which has been famously beset by a clergy abuse scandal, and other churches and nonprofit organizations. But supporters have a point when they say the only way to get information about abusers has been to sue. "The goal of survivors has nothing to do with money," said Laurie Asplund, who told the committee she was sexually assaulted at the age of 15 and now counsels victims. "It's about getting a piece of your soul back." The bill is modeled after laws passed in California and Delaware. Supporters say the California law has resulted in identification of 300 previously unknown sex offenders. The Wisconsin bill would repeal the state's civil statute of limitations on childhood sexual abuse cases involving incest and clergy - under existing law, victims can sue now until they reach the age of 35 - and open a three-year window for victims who had been barred previously from suing. The concerns of the Milwaukee Catholic Archdiocese, the Wisconsin Council of Churches and others certainly have some validity, especially when it comes to small churches with few financial resources. And if some accommodation can be made for small churches, that should be considered. But those concerns are outweighed by the justice due to victims and to the potential discovery of more sex offenders. Wisconsin law has long worked against the interests of victims of child abuse, whether that abuse was at the hand of a member of the clergy or, as happens far more often, of a family member or friend. Not only were victims brutalized by their assailants, in too many cases, those who should have protected victims turned their backs. Victims deserve their day in court, and this bill deserves passage. Should the statute of limitations be lifted on abuse cases? To be considered for publication as a letter to the editor, e-mail your opinion to the Journal Sentinel editorial department.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.