Posts Tagged 'church sex abuse'

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court May Have Just Shown Us Why a Sex Abuse Amendment is So Important

PA Supreme Court ends sex abuse survivor's search for justice“We need not resolve this issue as it is clear the statute of limitations expired decades ago.” These are the words penned by Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Christine Donohue when writing for the 5-2 majority that seemingly ended a sex abuse survivor’s effort to get justice.

The lawsuit was brought by a woman over claims of sexual abuse endured at the hands of her ...

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Amendment to Expand Time Limits on Childhood Sex Abuse Allegations Set to Clear Pennsylvania House

Pennsylvania moves closer to childhood sex abuse constitutional amendmentAn amendment to Pennsylvania’s Constitution that would extend time limits on when a survivor of childhood sexual abuse can come forward has once again been approved through a vote in the Commonwealth’s House of Representatives. Changes to Pennsylvania’s constitution must be approved through both chambers of its legislature during two consecutive legislative sessions before being presented to the people as a referendum vote. The ...

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Sex Abuse Lawsuit Settlements May Bankrupt Boy Scouts by Summer

Boy Scouts faces bankruptcy as costs of sex abuse settlements stack upAs the Boy Scouts of America work to settle nearly 100,000 claims of sexual abuse of the children under their care, the organization says that they need to settle the claims by this coming summer or they may not be around for the fall.

The number of settlements was finalized last month as a deadline elapsed for those wishing to come forward ...

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Boy Scouts, Catholic Church Using Variety of Tactics to Lobby Against Abuse Statutes

Catholic Church lobbying legislators in sermons and bulletins on sex abuse billIn early 2000, an episode of The West Wing aired in which a lawyer – in an effort to influence the White House to commute his client’s death sentence – convinces a rabbi to deliver a sermon on capital punishment during that week’s services as a senior aid to the President is known to sit among the attendees. The President, a devout Catholic, would himself ...

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Church Sex Abuse Accusations Extend Beyond Catholic Dioceses

southern baptist megachurch accused of inaction on sexual abuse of childA prominent Southern Baptist megachurch is facing allegations that a pastor in the organization sexually abused a child at one of its summer camps. Village Church, based in Flower Mound, Texas, has been accused of being “willfully negligent” in the care of the children attending the camp and, as a result, has turned a member family’s life upside down.

The child, referred ...

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As Work Continues in Pennsylvania, New Jersey Considers Implications of New Sex Abuse Statutes of Limitations

Pennsylvania and New Jersey work to extend statute of limitations in church sex abuse casesMultiple bills to extend the statute of limitations for victims of child sex abuse have been under consideration in Pennsylvania in recent months. Republican Representative Paul Schemel of Franklin does not want to see a change to the laws governing how long a survivor of sexual abuse has before they must come forward. “We have statutes of limitations for reasons,” ...

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