GA- Lawmakers may change child sex law
For immediate release: Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2014
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, [email protected])
Georgia lawmakers may lengthen the time child sex abuse victims can take legal actions against the adults who molested them. We hope this bill (H.B. 771) passes. It's not perfect but it will make kids safer.
http://www.thebrunswicknews.com/open_access/local_news/CAMDEN-021814-KK#
Giving child sex abuse victims more time to file civil cases helps to publicly expose those who commit and conceal crimes against kids. Ideally, however, we believe the statute of limitations should be removed entirely and a civil “window” be adopted that enables any victim to expose any predator, no matter how long ago the crimes took place.
When California lawmakers did this, more than 300 predators were exposed, many of whom were still on the job or living among unsuspecting neighbors.
Most victims are unable to come forward for years or even decades. We feel that there should be no time limit on when a victim can come forward to get justice for the heinous crime of childhood sexual abuse.
We urge the Georgia legislature to pass H.B. 771. We hope that they will go even further, though, and make Georgia kids much safer by repealing the statute of limitations all together.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 15,000 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]), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, [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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