BishopAccountability.org

Albany measure would compel clergy members to report child abuse

By Joe Mahoney
CNHI
November 08, 2018

https://www.niagara-gazette.com/news/local_news/albany-measure-would-compel-clergy-members-to-report-child-abuse/article_ed38accb-346b-5216-8565-895bf82dbee9.html

The New York state Capitol in Albany
Photo by Hans Pennink

With New York's Catholic bishops grappling with a clergy sexual abuse crisis, an influential GOP state senator from Western New York is calling on fellow lawmakers to repeal the statute of limitations for offenses involving the sexual attack of children and offer whisteblower protections to those who report molestations.

“This legislation will ensure that those in positions of authority are held accountable and will give victims the ability to seek prosecution of their abuser," Sen. Patrick Gallivan, R-Elma, said in a statement.

Gallivan said his bill would extend the statute of limitation under the civil practice law to recover damages for physical and psychological injuries caused by child molesters.

The bill, filed while lawmakers are scheduled to remain on recess until January, would also add clergy members to the list of those who are mandated to report suspected child abuse to law enforcement.

But Gallivan's legislation is expected to face a hurdle, erected by the outcome of this week's elections that concluded with Democrats winning enough Senate seats to take control of Albany's upper chamber in less than eight weeks.

The author of a competing bill known as the Child Victims Act, Sen. Brad Hoylman, D-Manhattan, told CNHI he believes the Gallivan legislation is doomed because it lacks a one-year "look back" window to allow child victims of sexual assault to bring civil suits against molesters and employers who enabled abuse.

"This is too little, too late," said Hoylman, whose proposal has been opposed by Catholic leaders and some others who argue  enacting a look back period for litigating old abuse allegations would create an evidentiary nightmare for the courts.

Hoylman, however, maintained there is such strong public support for the look back period that the issue likely factored into the losses sustained by Senate Republicans on Election Day.

A Gallivan spokesman, Jim Ranney, noted the state Attorney General's office has launched a statewide investigation into clergy sexual abuse, a probe initiated after a similar review by Pennsylvania officials turned up hundreds of abuse allegations against Catholic priests. Ranney suggested that the look-back issue could be revisited after the New York investigation concludes.

The Albany debate is heating up against the backdrop of the Diocese of Buffalo, led by Bishop Richard J. Malone, deals with a swirl of controversy over its handling of scores of clergy abuse allegations. Diocesan officials acknowledged this week its investigators have delved into allegations involving 132 priests, and noting that 191 new claims of abuse involve allegations that are at least 18 years old.

The extent of the crisis became known after a former secretary to Malone, Siobhan O'Connor, leaked internal diocesan documents to Buffalo television station WKBW, with those revelations later getting further amplification from the CBS show, "60 Minutes."

Dennis Poust, spokesman for the New York State Catholic Conference, which includes all the state's bishops, said the organization has long supported the elimination of the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse.

"This was actually the very first recommendation of the Pennsylvania grand jury that investigated the Catholic Church in that state, and we agree with it," Poust said.

He contended the legislation touted by Hoylman is flawed because it would only extend the criminal statute of limitations by five years.

"We think there is much that can be done to protect children and provide justice to survivors of past abuse and we look forward to being a part of a solution that satisfies all survivors first and foremost but that also protects children now and in the future," he said.

Catholic dioceses across the nation are expected to get guidance for dealing with reports of sexual abuse by priests when the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops takes up the issue at its annual fall general assembly in Baltimore Sunday and Monday.

The agenda includes the approval of a third-party reporting system for claims of abuse by bishops. The bishops are also expected to consider adopting a code of conduct for bishops regarding sexual misconduct as well as developing a response to situations when a bishop has been deemed to be negligent in the handling of abuse cases.

Under canon law, bishops can only be removed from their posts by the Pope. In 2016, Pope Francis determined that negligence by a bishop in the handling of sexual abuse claims against priests amounts to "grave cause" for removal.

Contact: jmahoney@cnhi.com




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