Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse at Cathedral of St. Joseph, Susan Campbell, The Hartford Courant, April 21, 2010

Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse at Cathedral of St. Joseph

By Susan Campbell
The Hartford Courant
April 21, 2010

http://blogs.courant.com/susan_campbell/2010/04/adult-survivors-of-childhood-s.html

At noon today, about 30 people gathered at Hartford's Cathedral of St. Joseph to protest the Archdiocese of Hartford's opposition to House Bill 5473, which extends the civil statute of limitations on seeking redress after the sexual abuse, assault or exploitation of a minor. The bill also sets strict rules for people who want to file a lawsuit.

That's Beth McCabe to the left, of SNAP CT, holding a photo of herself as a girl. McCabe is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. She was joined by survivors and their supporters, including Paul Kellen (pictured below), of Medford, Mass., who stood holding photos of children sexually abused by church clergy.

People handed out leaflets clarifying the bill, and countered information put out by the archdiocese in its heavy lobbying effort.

House Bill 5473 sets specific criteria for an adult older than 48 filing a childhood sexual abuse claim. Any such claim -- which would require documentary or photographic evidence of abuse -- would have to join an existing case involving the same defendant or defendants, and substantially the same abuse. The fears of the Catholic Church that this would unleash a torrent of frivolous claims are unfounded.