CA--Statewide drive to reform CA child sex laws to start
For immediate release: Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015
Statement by Joelle Casteix of California, SNAP Southern California director (949-322-7434, [email protected])
A statewide petition drive to make California kids safer by repealing archaic, predatory-friendly laws will soon start. We applaud this move and the brave survivor who’s responsible for it.
Will Lynch, who was sexually violated as a child by a Jesuit priest, has begun a ballot initiative to repeal the arbitrary criminal and civil statutes of limitations on child sex crimes, the time limits that prevent most child victims from exposing their perpetrators in court and prevent most prosecutors from pursuing those molesters.
We in SNAP believe there should be no statute of limitations on these heinous, life-altering crimes. These statutes give those who commit or conceal child sexual abuse the incentive to intimidate victims, discredit witnesses, threaten whistleblowers, destroy evidence, stonewall police, and deceive prosecutors, so that the deadline to charge or sue the wrongdoers passes. It’s astonishingly irresponsible and callous to let this reckless injustice continue.
Many states have relaxed, reformed or revoked these dreadful statutes. A handful have gone further and adopted temporary repeals or “windows” that enable any child sex abuse victim to use the civil courts to take action against and warn the public about child molesters. http://sol-reform.com/
We hope millions of California citizens sign these petitions and vote for this sorely-needed measure. We also challenge California Catholic officials to put their muscle behind this effort. Bishops talk the abuse prevention talk. They rarely walk the abuse prevention walk, however. In fact, they often oppose secular legal reforms that would protect kids. So we urge them to honor their repeated pledges to put the safety of children first by throwing their political weight and vast resources behind this struggle.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 20,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Contact - David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, [email protected], [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, [email protected])
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director
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