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	Abuse Claims Less Likely to Be Ignored By Nathan Koppel and Stephanie Simon Wall Street Journal November 26, 2011 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203710704577054902566399554.html?mod=googlenews_wsj The sexual-abuse investigation at Penn State marks the latest in a string of high-profile child-molestation allegations in recent decades, but experts say that doesn't mean such crimes are becoming more common. Instead, they say, society has become more aware of the threat of child sexual abuse, and far more aggressive about investigating and punishing it. Sentences have grown longer, and the number of people listed on sex-offender registries has jumped. "A lot more untoward behavior towards kids is recast as a serious felony when maybe in the past it would be sloughed off as, 'There goes that crazy uncle again,' or variations on that theme," said Douglas Berman, a professor at Ohio State University's Moritz College of Law who specializes in criminal sentencing. The subject of child sexual abuse has also edged more into the open as institutions such as the Boy Scouts of America and the Catholic Church have been forced to confront molesters in their midst. "We've made some pretty good progress at breaking the code of silence," said Jeff Dion, director of the National Crime Victim Bar Association. "We know we have to talk about it." The indictment of former Pennsylvania State University assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky on charges of sexually abusing boys—allegations Mr. Sandusky has denied—appears to have emboldened victims of sexual abuse in unrelated cases to come forward. State and private hotlines say they have been flooded with calls. It seems to have prompted soul-searching at other institutions, too. Days after the Penn State case came to light, Syracuse University in New York placed longtime assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine on administrative leave following allegations that he molested former ball boys more than 25 years ago. Syracuse had previously investigated and dismissed similar complaints about him. Mr. Fine, who hasn't been charged, denies any wrongdoing. In South Carolina, administrators at the Citadel military college publicly apologized for failing to investigate a 2007 complaint by a teen who said a counselor at the school's summer camp had enticed male students to watch porn and masturbate with him. The college didn't report the allegations to police. The counselor, Louis ReVille, went on to work as a coach and educator and was arrested in late October on charges of molesting five boys. Mr. ReVille is cooperating with investigators and hasn't entered a plea. His attorney, Craig Jones Jr., declined to comment. But these high-profile cases don't necessarily mean that sex abuse is on the rise. The Federal Bureau of Investigation doesn't specifically track child-sex-abuse arrests. But Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nonprofit group, said confirmed cases of abuse have declined over the past 20 years, because perpetrators are being more aggressively identified, imprisoned and monitored through sex-offender registries. Prosecutions weren't common 25 years ago, but today, "more of these guys are going away" to prison, Mr. Allen said. There are about 740,000 registered sex offenders nationwide, up from about 600,000 in 2006, according to Mr. Allen, who said studies indicate that the majority of those registered offenders victimized children. In the past 15 years, many states have strengthened laws dealing with sex crimes against children, making it easier to prosecute abusers who are identified years after their assaults. "There is a growing recognition that minors are slow to report abuse," said Corey Rayburn Yung, a professor at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago. States have also increased the penalties for convictions. The median prison sentence for sex abusers was 70 months in 2006, up from 44 months in 1996, according to the most recent data from the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics. A federal law enacted in 2006 created a mandatory sentence of at least 30 years for the aggravated sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12. There was no mandatory minimum sentence under prior federal law. Law enforcement has also become more sophisticated in dealing with child-abuse cases, including refining techniques for interviewing children and using social media to determine whether suspects have established contacts with alleged abuse victims, said Scott Burns, executive director of the National District Attorneys Association. Still, experts believe sexual abuse of children remains widely under-reported, experts say, for both psychological and legal reasons. There is a natural tendency to assume the best of family members and authority figures, who make up a significant percentage of abusers. Plus, the legal duty to report sexual abuse remains unclear in many instances, including what sorts of conduct should trigger a call to authorities. Mr. Dion said national surveys have shown that less than 10% of abuse cases are reported to police. States typically have laws that require the reporting of sex crimes against children, but often the reporting requirements apply only to designated classes of people, such as doctors and educators. Several states, including Pennsylvania, are now considering broadening their mandatory-reporting laws. "There's been a slight increase over time in our willingness to believe that a popular, charismatic adult can be a predator," said David Clohessy, executive director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP. "But it's been a painfully slow process."
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