BALTIMORE (MD)
The BayNet [California MD]
February 19, 2024
By Brenna Kelly
Last year, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed into law the Child Victims Act of 2023, which eliminates the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse cases. This is incredibly important to the survivors of these type of crimes due to the fact the perpetrators often are not caught for these heinous acts before they cyclically abuse others.
When the child is older, they may be able to help with the cases they were involved in – thus, giving them a voice. Allowing victims to express how these crimes affected them and seeing the justice system work allows for higher rates of healing.
In 2020, there were 1,365,166 children in Maryland. Of those children, 7,242 were victims of child abuse or neglect. 28.4% of the child abuse or neglect that occurred in Maryland in 2020 was sexual abuse, meaning 2,059 Maryland children experienced sexual abuse. This is an increase of 3.4% from 2019. The percentage of victims of child sexual abuse in Maryland is significantly higher than the national average of 9%. [1]
Locally, in 2018, a Calvert County man was indicted on 106 counts of child sexual abuse. See article here.
In 2017, a Charles County man was indicted on 206 counts of child sex abuse stemming from a 2016 accusation and eventually convicted. See article here.
In 2023, a St. Mary’s County man was convicted of six counts of child sex abuse. See article here.
These cases are basic examples of the repetitive nature of pedophile related crimes that snake their way into our neighborhoods and schools like a cancer that is spreading.
They also show the amount of time it can take to convict, the amount of evidence needing to be seized, and how a clock on these crimes would’ve been a huge miscarriage of justice.
However, Maryland is stepping up their game against child abuse despite the growing number in cases with this new law and the instituting of incentives for catching predators faster. Recently, a cash reward was offered to anyone that could identify and lead to an arrest of a woman suspected allegedly involved in a current case. See article here:
Prevention is key and education is power. Know what signs to look for with your children and other children that could be victims of abuse. For more information on how to prevent child sex abuse click here.
If you were a victim of an abuser associated with a school or place of worship, or you have knowledge of such abuse, please provide the information you want to share about it, click here or call the Maryland Attorney General hotline at 410-576-6312.
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Citation: https://mcasa.org/assets/files/Incidence_of_CSA_Fact_Sheet_2021.12.pdf [1]
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