12 APRIL 12, 2018 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
HEADING
Child Victims Act should fi nally get a vote
For years, advocates of child
abuse victims have tried in vain
to convince lawmakers in the
New York State Legislature to adopt
the Child Victims Act. The bill seeks
to expand the statute of limitations
already in place regarding civil cases
over alleged sexual abuse.
Their eff orts have been stymied
by myriad groups including the Boy
Scouts of America, Orthodox Jewish
groups and Catholic Church, each of
which fears that the act’s enactment
would bring on a new wave of costly
litigation.
These are genuine concerns, especially
in the case of the Catholic Church,
which has suff ered tremendous fi nancial
losses from lawsuits brought by
the victims of predatory clergy members.
However, the lawsuits aren’t the
only reason for the church’s fi nancial
struggles; declining enrollment led
to dozens of Catholic schools across
Brooklyn and Queens being closed
over the last 13 years. Parishes have
also been consolidated as a result of
declining attendance and participation
in order to further cut costs.
The institutions opposed to the
Child Victims Act suff ered tremendous
fi nancial losses in civil litigation
because they were found, in court, not
to have done enough to protect the victims
of child sex abuse — or, worse, did
more to shield the abusers from facing
justice for their crimes.
That these institutions suffered
greatly from the consequences of their
negligence should not be an excuse to
preclude other victims of child sex abuse
from seeking the justice they deserve.
Like so many other issues in the State
Capitol, the Child Victims Act has been
treated like a bargaining chip. It was
left out of the most recent state budget
deal which included just about everything
else under the sun. With less
than three months remaining in the
active session, it’s doubtful that the act
will get a vote in both the Assembly and
state Senate. It has repeatedly failed to
pass both houses in recent years.
Justice shouldn’t have such a stringent
time limit. The statute of limitations
for civil child sex abuse and
other equally egregious cases should
be more fl exible to give the victims
the opportunity to have their day in
court when they’re emotionally ready
to confront their abusers.
Now is the time for New York State’s
Legislature and governor to step up
and, at long last, do the right thing.
EDITORIAL
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