CA--Group urges CA lawmakers to prevent “victim-blaming” in child abuse cases

For immediate release: Tuesday, Dec. 2

Statement by Joelle Casteix of Newport Beach CA, western regional director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (949 322 7434, [email protected])

We are grateful that California legislators are trying to fix flaws in state statutes that enable defendants in abuse cases to blame children for their own suffering.

http://www.scpr.org/news/2014/11/26/48315/kpcc-report-on-lausd-middle-school-abuse-suit-spar/   

We’re appalled by the tactics used by LAUSD lawyers to hurt victims that sue child molesting teachers. Kids of any age are never at fault when they are sexually assaulted or exploited by adults. Shame on the district and its lawyers for suggesting otherwise.

We hope lawmakers will remedy this injustice quickly and decisively. We also hope they’ll fix an even more pressing problem: California’s archaic, predator-friendly statutes of limitations that prevent most child sex abuse victims from protecting kids and deterring cover ups through the justice system.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We were founded in 1988 and have 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, [email protected], Barbara Dorris 314-503-0003, [email protected], Barbara Blaine 312-399-4747, [email protected]   


Showing 1 comment

SNAP Network is a GuideStar Gold Participant