Top-Five Reasons Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors Do Not Immediately Come Forward
Delayed reporting of childhood sexual abuse is extremely common. Researchers have known this for years. Unfortunately, the law does not keep up with science very well. In recent years, several states have altered their respective statute of limitations laws in favor of survivors, including Maryland. A statute of limitations (SOL) limits a victim’s right to...
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No More Adverse Childhood Event Statue of Limitations in Maryland
In the wake of a sweeping report detailing long-term childhood sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, Governor Wes More signed a provision that ended the statute of limitations (SOL) for institutional adverse childhood event (ACE) sexual abuse claims. “There is no statute of limitations on the hurt that endures for decades after someone is assaulted,”...
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MD Attorney General Finally Releases Sex Abuse Report
After many delays, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown published a 1,000-page report which detailed an “astonishing” amount of child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Maryland over the past 80 years. The report paints a damning picture of the archdiocese, which is the oldest Roman Catholic diocese in the country and spans much of...
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Catholic Church Failed to Block Sex Abuses Cases at the Statehouse
The Archdiocese of Maryland paid lobbyists over $200,000 in an apparently failed effort to defeat a statute of limitations forgiveness measure and other pro-victim laws. Professional lobbyists are people whose business is trying to influence legislation, regulation, or other government decisions, actions, or policies on behalf of a group or individual who hires them. Individuals...
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Maryland AG Vows to Defend Controversial Lookback Provision
State Attorney General Anthony Brown said that since a proposal to abolish the statute of limitations in child sex abuse cases was “not clearly unconstitutional,” his office would defend it in court. The proposal has more momentum than in years past when it failed to pass out of the Senate’s Judicial Proceedings Committee. Advocates for...
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Lawmakers Approve SOL Exception for Survivors of Sexual Abuse
In a major win for survivors of sexual abuse, a legislative panel voted overwhelmingly to relax the statute of limitations in sexual abuse cases. If the bill goes on to pass the Maryland General Assembly, the church is likely to face a crush of new lawsuits, especially in light of the impending release of a...
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MD Public to See Most of AG Sex Abuse Report
A municipal judge ruled that people have a right to see a redacted version of a 456-page Attorney General probe into alleged sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. To balance things, people who were named in the report that did not have a chance to defend themselves in front of a grand jury may...
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Maryland Delegates Are Working to Strengthen Statutes for Childhood Abuse Victims
Maryland Delegates Are Proposing a New Bill There is a groundswell happening all around the country. State-level politicians and non-governmental organizations are working together in numerous states to make it easier for the victims of childhood sexual abuse to seek justice. Delegates here in the Maryland General Assembly are also a part of this movement...
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Pope’s Summit On Sexual Abuse In The Church Acknowledges The Problem But Is Short On Solutions
The first Vatican summit on sexual abuse confirmed that misconduct happens within the Catholic Church and has for decades. After international pressure, the conference was intended to make steps toward resolving wide-spread abuse among its clergy. Catholic priests and bishops are facing criminal trials across the globe. Currently, 17 states in the U.S. have continued...
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Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Update in Maryland
Accounts of predatory priests and childhood sexual abuse scandals within the Catholic Church have hurt many populations and continue to affect those in the mid-Atlantic region. In August 2018, a 1,000-page grand jury report issued after a two-year investigation revealed sexual abuse of children across dioceses in Pennsylvania, and cover-ups from the Vatican. Encouraged by...
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