CALIFORNIA
The Worthy Adversary
Posted by Joelle Casteix on August 15, 2013
Rep. Diane Harkey: Please take a look at cost of crimes in YOUR district before voting no.
Yesterday, CA Assembly Appropriations Committee Vice Chair Diane Harkey voted no on important crime victims legislation—even though a similar 2003 bill exposed horrible abuse in her own district.
I don’t believe it was a malicious act against victims, I just think she doesn’t know about the child sex crimes and cover-up that have thrived in the 73rd Assembly District.
SB 131—the California Child Victims’ Act, a bill that gives crime victims the opportunity to use the civil courts to seek justice and accountability—has stalled in House Appropriations Committee.
According to the Los Angeles Times:
A key question for the committee is whether new lawsuits would strain an already overburdened court system. At the height of the clergy abuse scandal in 2002, the legislature signed off on a similar one-year window. Hundreds of people filed claims, many of them against the Catholic Church.
Diane Harkey (R-Dana Point) was one of the no votes. She represents the district that is the home of St. Edward’s in Dana Point—home of some of the worst perpetrators in OC history. We wouldn’t know about the scope and scale of the crimes against her constituents were it not for for a similar, but broader, 2003 civil window bill.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.