CONNECTICUT
Record-Journal
April 22, 2017
By Matthew Zabierek, Record-Journal staff
WALLINGFORD — Following the release of a report that revealed several incidents of alleged sexual abuse at Choate Rosemary Hall since the 1960s, state officials and legal experts say state laws regarding the reporting of child abuse need to be clarified to allow claims to be investigated after the victim turns 18 years old.
State law currently allows the state Department of Children and Families to investigate reports of child abuse until the victim turns 18 and is considered an adult. Once an individual reaches adulthood, DCF historically hasn’t “accepted reports relating to potential victims if that person is no longer a minor,” said Julie Fay, a lawyer who specializes in school law at Hartford-based law firm Shipman & Goodwin.
Fay said existing state laws do not provide guidance for how DCF should investigate claims from an adult who alleges abuse as a child, “creating question as to how to handle information relating to suspicions that involve children who are now adults.”
“We need to make sure that we’re crystal clear about how we respond to child abuse in Connecticut,” said Mickey Kramer, an associate child advocate with the state Office of the Child Advocate. “If the law isn’t clear, then how can we expect DCF to respond consistently and reliably?”
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