Lifting of Child Sex Abuse Statutes of Limitations Urged
By Louella Losinio
Alleged sex abuse victims of Archbishop Anthony Apuron and their supporters urged the passage of the Bill 326-33, authored by Sen. Frank Blas Jr. that would amend the law relative to the statute of limitations in cases involving child sex abuse, during a public hearing yesterday, June 27 at the Guam Legislature. The bill strikes out a two-year statute of limitation for civil claims. “Child sexual abuse victims often need many years to overcome the pain of their abuse, and time for them to speak out about the abuse that they have suffered. Sadly, many victims of child sexual abuse are unable to proceed with civil claims against the perpetrator because those claims have been barred by the statutes of limitations,” Blas said. Walter Denton, one of Apuron's alleged victims, said the measure would give victims of sexual abuse within and outside the Roman Catholic Church the opportunity to be silent no more. “Now it gives them recourse to be heard,” he said. “As it stands, the current law protects the predator from his past crimes. Once the statute of limitations kick in, it protects them from being sued and prosecuted,” he said, imploring the legislature to act on the measure immediately. “So that people like Apuron and any other person or institution who has aided him or covered up for him will be held accountable, eliminate any time limitations on the right to sue or prosecute no matter how long ago.” “Please give us Agat boys a chance to achieve some measure of justice and closure in our lives,” Denton said. Dark secret Roland Sondia, another alleged victim from Agat, also testified in favor of the measure. “I thought I was the only one,” Sondia said. “I kept this dark secret with me for 39 years." Sondia said, “We need to abolish the statutes of limitations, so potential perpetrators would know that no amount of time would prevent the victim from coming forward to sue and for the government to prosecute.” He said he is hopeful that that with the passage of the bill, “other victims would come forward so they could begin the long road toward healing and recovery.” Doris Concepcion, said her son, Joseph A. Quinata, disclosed to her that he had been abused, shortly before his death in 2005. She said if the bill becomes law, she wants to take Apuron to court so that the truth can come out. Sharleen Santos-Bamba, read the testimony of her uncle, Roy Quintanilla, another alleged victim of Apuron. “No one, especially a child should ever have to go through being sexually abused or be afraid to come forward and to tell someone for fear that no one will believe them,” Quintanilla's statement read. Joseph Santos, who launched the “Silent No More” petition drive, urged the senators to push the measure through. “You are either against child sexual abuse or for it. If you vote for the bill, we know where you stand, if you abstain we know where you stand. And the governor should sign it as fast as he can,” he said. Santos quoted rape statistics from Healing Hearts Crisis Center which he said showed more than 100 cases of rape per year during the past three years. He said the data showed that the majority of rapes involved victims who were minors and girls. “Those are just the reported rapes, there are so many more that are out there,” he said. “This bill is more than just about one person. It is about our community,” Santos said.
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