Clergy abuse victims call for reform

Clergy abuse victims call for reform

 

By Christine McConville, Globe Staff

About 60 people, most alleged victims of clergy sex abuse, unveileda bill Sunday designed to provide relief for victims of childhoodsexual abuse, while making abusers more accountable and letting thepublic know how pervasive this abuse is.

After a solemn midday march Sunday from the Archdiocese of Boston�sCathedral of the Holy Cross to the front doors of a nearby law school,they outlined a plan to more fully address what some called a "silent,violent epidemic."

"All of us can�t fix what happened to us, but we universally want toprotect future generations from going through this," Ann Hagan Webb ofthe Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests told a cheering crowdin Boston�s Chinatown after the legislative package was detailed.

Jetta Bernier, cochairwoman of the Coalition to Reform Sexual AbuseLaws, said the Comprehensive Protection from Childhood Sexual Abuse Actof 2007 aims to lay the groundwork for future reforms.

The group�s bill includes a provision that forces institutions thatserve children to report to law enforcement credible information theyreceive about individuals who are alleged to have abused children inthe past yet who are still working with children. It also calls forreducing financial barriers for survivors who cannot afford treatmentby allowing them to tap into a victim�s compensation fund.

It aims to eliminate the statute of limitations in all future casesof people who were sexually abused before they were 18 years old, andeliminate the charitable immunity doctrine, which allows forinsignificant monetary consequences against institutions that fail toprotect children, the group said.

Christine McConville can be reached by e-mail at cmcconville@globe.com.