I’m expecting people from all across New York State in Albany on May 3 and May 4 to speak to their elected state officials about the Child Victims Act and the importance of reforming New York State’s antiquated statute of limitations (SOL) for child sex abuse crimes.
There will be Legislative Roundtable programs on each day, but the primary purpose of these CVA Lobby Days is to convince legislators to support bills that will reform current law. Right now survivors of abuse are victimized a second time by existing laws that protect predators and those who hide them.
Two bills in the Legislature sponsored by me and Senator Brad Hoylman will change all that. A2872A/S63A and A8567/S6436 will completely remove the civil and criminal statute of limitations for child sex abuse crimes in the future and will also create a one-year civil “window” so older victims can get justice for offenses done against them in the past.
SET UP APPOINTMENT WITH YOUR LEGISLATOR: If you are able to come to Albany, you can meet with your own personal legislator, Call and request an appointment to see them on May 3rd or May 4th to ask them to support CVA and tell them the reasons why.
To identify your local Assemblymember go to this site and type in your address
Priority Senators for CVA Lobby Days May 3-4 (updated 4-12-16) – Even though CVA has passed the Assembly four times over the years, it has never been brought to the floor of the State Senate. Attached is contact information for key members of the Senate and Senate Leaders. Reach out, particularly, to members of the Senate Codes Committee who are identified, since that is the committee that must bring CVA to the floor for a vote. Ask for an appointment and tell them why you believe the Senate needs to act this year to vote on the Child Victims Act.
[Background Info for CVA Lobbyist] about the Child Victims Act to use in preparing for your meetings. You are welcome to visit my office in Room 714 of the Legislative Office Building to pick up copies of materials and connect with other advocates who have come to Albany.
ROUNDTABLE PROGRAMS IN ALBANY: A reminder about our two Roundtable programs you will not want to miss:
— 3:00 pm, Tuesday, May 3rd, Roundtable on child sexual abuse in sports, school, youth and family settings.
— 2:00 pm, Wednesday, May 4th, Roundtable on themes from the Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight” about the Boston priest scandal and hidden abuse in the Catholic Church.
I am deeply grateful to the many survivors and advocates who have worked so hard over many years to battle with me for SOL reform. I look forward to seeing you in Albany next week.
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-29 18:47:202016-04-29 18:47:20Get Ready for CVA Lobby Day in Albany Next Week
The U.S. is facing a shortage of forensic examiners for sexual assault survivors, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report. Most states don’t even keep any data on their sexual assault examiners, who perform rape kit exams in medical settings, and though states can get federal grants to underwrite training and salaries for examiners, the few examiners that do exist are often given inadequate or inconsistent training.
Rural areas of the U.S. are most likely to suffer a lack of examiners, the report states. In Wisconsin, for example, almost half of the state’s counties don’t have a single one. All six states GAO studied— Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Oregon, and Wisconsin—reported that their ranks of their examiners were not sufficient to meet their needs for sexual-assault exams. This poses more than just an inconvenience for victims and their medical providers: If examiners can’t meet a rape survivor at a hospital in a timely manner, the state’s case against the perpetrator could suffer.
Between 2005 and 2010, 80 percent of female survivors of rape or sexual assault sought care in a medical setting. There, a trained examiner is supposed to conduct a forensic exam, which could involve collecting samples of hair, blood, saliva, and semen; scraping under the victim’s fingernails; recording any abrasions or bruises; and swabbing parts of the body. Examiners must log the evidence and keep a proper chain of custody in case it’s used in a civil or criminal case against the perpetrator. If the survivor does go to the police, the examiner might testify in court.
That’s why good examiners are trained in courtroom testimony in addition to preserving evidence integrity, providing testing and treatment for STIs, and being sensitive to the needs of a child or adult victim of recent trauma. But GAO found a complete lack of federal standards in examiner training or examiner availability in medical facilities, besides those in military, correctional, and Indian Health Services institutions. Most states don’t have their own guidelines for examiner training, either.
The GAO report highlights a troublingly high turnover rate as one of the biggest barriers to an effective, robust lineup of examiners. Since there are so few of them, they’re often on call for long, unpredictable shifts of emotionally draining work. Over two years in Wisconsin, GAO found, the state trained 540 examiners. At the end of the two years, just 42 of them were still active.
Though the Violence Against Women Act authorizes federal funding from three Department of Justice grant programs to be used to train and pay sexual assault examiners, five of the six states GAO studied reported trouble “obtaining support from stakeholders,” often because hospitals did not want to pay for examiners’ training or salaries.
On Thursday, Sens. Patty Murray, Michael Bennet, and Al Franken sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell. In it, they recommend establishing a task force to determine national standards of care for examiners, instituting best practices in evidence collection and preservation, and surveying states and hospitals that receive federal grants to identify challenges in providing examiner training, pay, and retention.
“Studies have shown that when exams are performed by medical providers trained to collect and preserve evidence, victims have better physical and mental health outcomes, higher quality evidence is collected, and prosecution rates are higher,” the senators wrote. “It is critical to survivors’ recovery and their efforts to seek justice that the Department of Justice work closely in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services to better meet survivors’ needs.”
Full article: http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2016/04/14/america_has_a_critical_shortage_of_medical_sexual_assault_examiners.html
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-26 01:14:312016-04-26 01:14:31Christina Cauterucci, America Has a Critical Shortage of Medical Sexual-Assault Examiners, Slate
The speaker who represented victims at the victims’ memorial ceremony at the Camden County Courthouse on Friday is still waiting for his day in court.
Justin Conway of Woodbine was invited to speak at the annual event hosted by the Camden County District Attorney’s Office to honor local crime victims, particularly those who lost their lives at the hands of another. The audience of about 40 included victims and their family members, victims’ advocates, court workers, law enforcement officers and elected officials. All three local mayors and a county representative presented proclamations recognizing it as National Victims’ Rights Awareness Week.
“For a long time, I looked for that justice and I looked for those rights at the bottom of a bottle, in deep dark holes of depression. I looked to law enforcement. I looked to my attorneys,” said Conway to the crowd assembled in the courthouse atrium. “And the reality is that justice and those rights came to me from my higher power and myself, and my willingness to do the next right thing.”
For Conway and six other adult men, getting their day in court meant filing a civil lawsuit against their alleged abuser. According to the complaint filed in Camden County Superior Court, the victims claim they suffered repeated sexual abuse at the hands of their karate instructor Craig Peeples, who owns and operates Pak’s Karate in Kingsland. Peeples has repeatedly denied accusations that he harmed students and has filed a countersuit for defamation of character.
During the ceremony, Conway talked about how he and other victims in his case lost their jobs, their marriages and themselves after stepping forward to tell the truth and yet for a long time, the court system offered them no avenues for seeking justice.
After law enforcement investigated the case in 2014, district attorney Jackie Johnson wrote in a letter that there was enough evidence to present the case to a grand jury. However, Johnson explained in the letter that she was barred from doing so because of the state’s statute of limitations on sex crimes.
“Because it had been too long, I would never face my perpetrator in court,” Conway said. “I refused to take that as an answer … because without access to a court of law, it’s just somebody saying something about somebody else.”
So Conway enlisted the help of his state legislator, Jason Spencer, and they fought in Atlanta for the right of victims to be heard by a judge and jury. The Hidden Predator Act was signed into law last year.
Although they were victorious in improving victims’ access to the court system, Conway said he is still fighting to get justice in his own case, which has not yet gone to trial.
“I’ve got some community support now. I even won an award presented by CNN and a foundation out of Atlanta for the work that we had done to pass the Hidden Predator Act,” he said to the crowd at the ceremony. “And yet, sitting at a stoplight in Camden County, I had to look eye to eye with the man who murdered my childhood.”
Conway said he also would continue to fight for the survivors of child sex crimes and offer them support. Conway said people often ask him why he doesn’t just “get over” what happened to him and move on.
“My answer is I have moved on. I’ve moved on to protecting other children. I have moved on to shedding the shame that I felt for so long. … And that, to me, is justice,” he said.
Conway said victims inspire other victims by simply picking up the pieces and doing the “next right thing.”
Also addressing the crowd were Johnson, victims’ advocate Sandee Ortega, assistant district attorney Katie Groper, St. Marys Mayor John Morrissey, Kingsland Mayor Kenneth Smith, Woodbine Mayor Steve Parrott, mental health provider Dale Blanton.
Chief magistrate judge Jennifer Lewis read the names of all of the Camden County victims who had died over the years. Court workers passed out flowers to the family members who attended the ceremony.
“It’s a really emotional time for us because … we form lifelong bonds with people who have been brought into the criminal justice system and our lives through horrible events,” Johnson said. “Coming back every year and seeing all of you all is humbling to us and reminds us of why we are here and why we do the work that we do.”
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-23 13:18:442016-04-23 13:18:44Jill Helton, Victim Says Justice Comes In Many Forms, Tribune-Georgian
I am so looking forward to OAASIS’ conference this Saturday! I greatly appreciate what we’ve learned in past conferences about how trauma impacts the brain. Now, we have an opportunity to take the next step together and practice real tools to transcend trauma and navigate shame in order that we can live more fully and honestly. I hope you’ll join me Saturday to learn how.
Sarah Peyton, our keynote speaker, will help us understand the way that the brain is affected by shame and the steps along the healing journey that lead to resiliency and robust well-being. Our breakout workshops will offer you an opportunity to experience more tools and resources to experience life more fully. And our restoring and grounding room will provide a space to step away and an opportunity to receive complimentary support services (Reiki, acupuncture, life coaching).
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-18 22:54:232016-04-18 22:54:23You Can Still Register Online for OAASIS' 2016 Conference!
ACTION ALERT – FOR SUPPORTERS OF THE CHILD VICTIMS ACT OF NY
Join Us in Albany for May 3-4 Lobby Days
Dear Friends:
Attention about the scourge of childhood sexual abuse and New York’s archaic statute of limitations has never been greater than it is right now. Outrage about case after case where perpetrators have been hidden and slipped away from justice has even become Page One news in one major paper.
Our existing New York laws are so terrible that we rank among the very worst among all 50 states in America for how the courts and criminal justice system treat survivors of child sex abuse.
Many of you have long been part of the battle to change our bad laws and I’m reaching out today to ask you, once again, to join me in Albany to let the Governor and State Legislators know you want them to act.
Our CVA Lobby Days are Tuesday and Wednesday, May 3 and May 4. The Tuesday program will include a roundtable where abuse in sports, schools and families will be discussed by a panel of experts and survivors. The second day has been inspired by the Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight” which helps us put the focus on hidden abuse in the Catholic Church and relatedSOL issues in NY State.
Our goal is to enact A2872A/A63A, which will completely eliminate the civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse offenses in the future. It also includes a one-year “window” where older victims can go to court against abusers and those who hid them. A companion bill A8567/S6436 will completely eliminate the criminal statute of limitations for these crimes.
Because of the strong support that CVA already has in the Assembly, with more than 60 co-sponsors, we want to concentrate lobbying activity on members of the State Senate during these two days.
I hope many of you will be able to come to Albany on May 3-4 to speak directly to our state government, but you do not have to wait to make your views known. Speak to the people at the very top by writing, emailing or calling our leaders. See the list attached for the names, addresses and telephone numbers.
Following is a schedule of key Lobby Day events.
Tuesday, May 3, Hearing Room B, NYS Legislative Office Building (LOB)
·2:00 pm – CVA Press Conference, Hearing Room B.
·2:45 pm – Roundtable, hosted by Assemblywoman Margaret Markey and State Senator Brad Hoylman. Moderated by Professor Marci Hamilton and featuring speakers and survivors discussing childhood sexual abuse and SOL issues in three sectors: Sports, Family, School/Youth Group settings.
·5-6:00 pm – Informal reception for Roundtable participants, advocates and lobbyists. Albany Room, on the Concourse.
Wednesday, May 4, Hearing Room B, NYS Legislative Office Building
THEME: Academy Award-Winning Film “Spotlight” Puts Focus on Hidden Abuse in Catholic Church and Statute of Limitations Issues in New York
·1:00 pm – CVA Press Conference
·2:00 pm – Roundtable hosted by Assemblywoman Markey and Senator Hoylman on how the themes from this Academy Award-winning movie impact New York State and all of America. Moderated by Professor Marci Hamilton and including participation of Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer and figures from “Spotlight”. Other participants will include representatives from Bishops Accountability, Call to Action, Catholic Whistleblowers, SNAP as well as clerical sex abuse survivors.
·5:00 pm – Screening of “Spotlight” for Lobby Day participants with special invitations to all members of the Senate and Assembly. (in location outside LOB building TBA)
It Takes A Village To Raise a Child,
…It Takes A Village To Rape A Child
“True Evil, Lies Not In The Depraved Act Of The One, But In The “Silence” Of The Many”.
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-17 14:27:432016-04-17 14:27:43ACTION ALERT – FOR SUPPORTERS OF THE CHILD VICTIMS ACT OF NY
”PA ALERT: HB 1947 Passes the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority”
“Today is an historic day in Pennsylvania because the House has finally chosen to side with the victims of child sex abuse against those who caused it. HB 1947, which passed the House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority today, should be named the Hidden Predator Act, as it revives all expired SOLs for anyone under the age 50 permanently. No one in Pennsylvania under the age of 50 will be denied justice ever again under this bill. And no one who abused a child or created the conditions for abuse in Pennsylvania should feel secure in current anonymity or believe that the secrets they still hold will remain hidden.
The survivors (and the families of those who have not survived) can see some light at the end of the tunnel. It is now up to the Senate to choose: justice and child protection or injustice and child endangerment. There is no other accurate way to say it.
Revival legislation is powerful medicine for the sickness of a society that lets children be abused as powerful adults stand by. But it is not nearly as powerful as the Catholic Conference has painted it, as I document here in a relative comparison of revival legislation across the US.http://sol-reform.com/data/
I hope that victims and their families will now redouble their efforts to help the Pennsylvania Senate see the irrefutable logic of reviving expired SOLs for child sex abuse victims.” – Marci A. Hamilton, April 12, 2016
http://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpg00SOL Reformhttp://sol-reform.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Hamilton-Logo.jpgSOL Reform2016-04-13 02:45:212016-04-13 02:45:21PA ALERT: HB 1947 Passes the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority
Get Ready for CVA Lobby Day in Albany Next Week
/in 2016 Action Alert, Action Alert, New York /by SOL ReformGet Ready for CVA Lobby Day in Albany Next Week
Dear Friends:
I’m expecting people from all across New York State in Albany on May 3 and May 4 to speak to their elected state officials about the Child Victims Act and the importance of reforming New York State’s antiquated statute of limitations (SOL) for child sex abuse crimes.
There will be Legislative Roundtable programs on each day, but the primary purpose of these CVA Lobby Days is to convince legislators to support bills that will reform current law. Right now survivors of abuse are victimized a second time by existing laws that protect predators and those who hide them.
Two bills in the Legislature sponsored by me and Senator Brad Hoylman will change all that. A2872A/S63A and A8567/S6436 will completely remove the civil and criminal statute of limitations for child sex abuse crimes in the future and will also create a one-year civil “window” so older victims can get justice for offenses done against them in the past.
SET UP APPOINTMENT WITH YOUR LEGISLATOR: If you are able to come to Albany, you can meet with your own personal legislator, Call and request an appointment to see them on May 3rd or May 4th to ask them to support CVA and tell them the reasons why.
To identify your local Assemblymember go to this site and type in your address
http://nyassembly.gov/mem/search/
To identify your local State Senator, go to this site and hit the “Find Your Senator” button – https://www.nysenate.gov/find-my-senator
Priority Senators for CVA Lobby Days May 3-4 (updated 4-12-16) – Even though CVA has passed the Assembly four times over the years, it has never been brought to the floor of the State Senate. Attached is contact information for key members of the Senate and Senate Leaders. Reach out, particularly, to members of the Senate Codes Committee who are identified, since that is the committee that must bring CVA to the floor for a vote. Ask for an appointment and tell them why you believe the Senate needs to act this year to vote on the Child Victims Act.
[Background Info for CVA Lobbyist] about the Child Victims Act to use in preparing for your meetings. You are welcome to visit my office in Room 714 of the Legislative Office Building to pick up copies of materials and connect with other advocates who have come to Albany.
ROUNDTABLE PROGRAMS IN ALBANY: A reminder about our two Roundtable programs you will not want to miss:
— 3:00 pm, Tuesday, May 3rd, Roundtable on child sexual abuse in sports, school, youth and family settings.
— 2:00 pm, Wednesday, May 4th, Roundtable on themes from the Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight” about the Boston priest scandal and hidden abuse in the Catholic Church.
I am deeply grateful to the many survivors and advocates who have worked so hard over many years to battle with me for SOL reform. I look forward to seeing you in Albany next week.
Sincerely, Assemblywoman Margaret Markey
Background Info for CVA Lobbyist
Christina Cauterucci, America Has a Critical Shortage of Medical Sexual-Assault Examiners, Slate
/in Uncategorized /by SOL ReformThe U.S. is facing a shortage of forensic examiners for sexual assault survivors, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report. Most states don’t even keep any data on their sexual assault examiners, who perform rape kit exams in medical settings, and though states can get federal grants to underwrite training and salaries for examiners, the few examiners that do exist are often given inadequate or inconsistent training.
Rural areas of the U.S. are most likely to suffer a lack of examiners, the report states. In Wisconsin, for example, almost half of the state’s counties don’t have a single one. All six states GAO studied— Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Oregon, and Wisconsin—reported that their ranks of their examiners were not sufficient to meet their needs for sexual-assault exams. This poses more than just an inconvenience for victims and their medical providers: If examiners can’t meet a rape survivor at a hospital in a timely manner, the state’s case against the perpetrator could suffer.
Between 2005 and 2010, 80 percent of female survivors of rape or sexual assault sought care in a medical setting. There, a trained examiner is supposed to conduct a forensic exam, which could involve collecting samples of hair, blood, saliva, and semen; scraping under the victim’s fingernails; recording any abrasions or bruises; and swabbing parts of the body. Examiners must log the evidence and keep a proper chain of custody in case it’s used in a civil or criminal case against the perpetrator. If the survivor does go to the police, the examiner might testify in court.
That’s why good examiners are trained in courtroom testimony in addition to preserving evidence integrity, providing testing and treatment for STIs, and being sensitive to the needs of a child or adult victim of recent trauma. But GAO found a complete lack of federal standards in examiner training or examiner availability in medical facilities, besides those in military, correctional, and Indian Health Services institutions. Most states don’t have their own guidelines for examiner training, either.
The GAO report highlights a troublingly high turnover rate as one of the biggest barriers to an effective, robust lineup of examiners. Since there are so few of them, they’re often on call for long, unpredictable shifts of emotionally draining work. Over two years in Wisconsin, GAO found, the state trained 540 examiners. At the end of the two years, just 42 of them were still active.
Though the Violence Against Women Act authorizes federal funding from three Department of Justice grant programs to be used to train and pay sexual assault examiners, five of the six states GAO studied reported trouble “obtaining support from stakeholders,” often because hospitals did not want to pay for examiners’ training or salaries.
On Thursday, Sens. Patty Murray, Michael Bennet, and Al Franken sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell. In it, they recommend establishing a task force to determine national standards of care for examiners, instituting best practices in evidence collection and preservation, and surveying states and hospitals that receive federal grants to identify challenges in providing examiner training, pay, and retention.
“Studies have shown that when exams are performed by medical providers trained to collect and preserve evidence, victims have better physical and mental health outcomes, higher quality evidence is collected, and prosecution rates are higher,” the senators wrote. “It is critical to survivors’ recovery and their efforts to seek justice that the Department of Justice work closely in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services to better meet survivors’ needs.”
Full article: http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2016/04/14/america_has_a_critical_shortage_of_medical_sexual_assault_examiners.html
Jill Helton, Victim Says Justice Comes In Many Forms, Tribune-Georgian
/in Georgia /by SOL ReformThe speaker who represented victims at the victims’ memorial ceremony at the Camden County Courthouse on Friday is still waiting for his day in court.
Justin Conway of Woodbine was invited to speak at the annual event hosted by the Camden County District Attorney’s Office to honor local crime victims, particularly those who lost their lives at the hands of another. The audience of about 40 included victims and their family members, victims’ advocates, court workers, law enforcement officers and elected officials. All three local mayors and a county representative presented proclamations recognizing it as National Victims’ Rights Awareness Week.
“For a long time, I looked for that justice and I looked for those rights at the bottom of a bottle, in deep dark holes of depression. I looked to law enforcement. I looked to my attorneys,” said Conway to the crowd assembled in the courthouse atrium. “And the reality is that justice and those rights came to me from my higher power and myself, and my willingness to do the next right thing.”
For Conway and six other adult men, getting their day in court meant filing a civil lawsuit against their alleged abuser. According to the complaint filed in Camden County Superior Court, the victims claim they suffered repeated sexual abuse at the hands of their karate instructor Craig Peeples, who owns and operates Pak’s Karate in Kingsland. Peeples has repeatedly denied accusations that he harmed students and has filed a countersuit for defamation of character.
During the ceremony, Conway talked about how he and other victims in his case lost their jobs, their marriages and themselves after stepping forward to tell the truth and yet for a long time, the court system offered them no avenues for seeking justice.
After law enforcement investigated the case in 2014, district attorney Jackie Johnson wrote in a letter that there was enough evidence to present the case to a grand jury. However, Johnson explained in the letter that she was barred from doing so because of the state’s statute of limitations on sex crimes.
“Because it had been too long, I would never face my perpetrator in court,” Conway said. “I refused to take that as an answer … because without access to a court of law, it’s just somebody saying something about somebody else.”
So Conway enlisted the help of his state legislator, Jason Spencer, and they fought in Atlanta for the right of victims to be heard by a judge and jury. The Hidden Predator Act was signed into law last year.
Although they were victorious in improving victims’ access to the court system, Conway said he is still fighting to get justice in his own case, which has not yet gone to trial.
“I’ve got some community support now. I even won an award presented by CNN and a foundation out of Atlanta for the work that we had done to pass the Hidden Predator Act,” he said to the crowd at the ceremony. “And yet, sitting at a stoplight in Camden County, I had to look eye to eye with the man who murdered my childhood.”
Conway said he also would continue to fight for the survivors of child sex crimes and offer them support. Conway said people often ask him why he doesn’t just “get over” what happened to him and move on.
“My answer is I have moved on. I’ve moved on to protecting other children. I have moved on to shedding the shame that I felt for so long. … And that, to me, is justice,” he said.
Conway said victims inspire other victims by simply picking up the pieces and doing the “next right thing.”
Also addressing the crowd were Johnson, victims’ advocate Sandee Ortega, assistant district attorney Katie Groper, St. Marys Mayor John Morrissey, Kingsland Mayor Kenneth Smith, Woodbine Mayor Steve Parrott, mental health provider Dale Blanton.
Chief magistrate judge Jennifer Lewis read the names of all of the Camden County victims who had died over the years. Court workers passed out flowers to the family members who attended the ceremony.
“It’s a really emotional time for us because … we form lifelong bonds with people who have been brought into the criminal justice system and our lives through horrible events,” Johnson said. “Coming back every year and seeing all of you all is humbling to us and reminds us of why we are here and why we do the work that we do.”
You Can Still Register Online for OAASIS’ 2016 Conference!
/in Uncategorized /by SOL ReformI am so looking forward to OAASIS’ conference this Saturday! I greatly appreciate what we’ve learned in past conferences about how trauma impacts the brain. Now, we have an opportunity to take the next step together and practice real tools to transcend trauma and navigate shame in order that we can live more fully and honestly. I hope you’ll join me Saturday to learn how.
Embracing Your Inner Strength & Building Resiliency
Moving from Shame to Liberation
Saturday, April 23rd
9:00 am – 2:00 pm (Registration begins at 8:30)
Revolution Hall (1300 SE Stark St, Portland)
Before Wednesday, April 20: $30 advance registration ($40 at the door)
Sarah Peyton, our keynote speaker, will help us understand the way that the brain is affected by shame and the steps along the healing journey that lead to resiliency and robust well-being. Our breakout workshops will offer you an opportunity to experience more tools and resources to experience life more fully. And our restoring and grounding room will provide a space to step away and an opportunity to receive complimentary support services (Reiki, acupuncture, life coaching).
You can learn more and register here. Advance registration closes this Wednesday, April 20th!
ACTION ALERT – FOR SUPPORTERS OF THE CHILD VICTIMS ACT OF NY
/in Action Alert, New York /by SOL ReformACTION ALERT – FOR SUPPORTERS OF THE CHILD VICTIMS ACT OF NY
Join Us in Albany for May 3-4 Lobby Days
Dear Friends:
Attention about the scourge of childhood sexual abuse and New York’s archaic statute of limitations has never been greater than it is right now. Outrage about case after case where perpetrators have been hidden and slipped away from justice has even become Page One news in one major paper.
Our existing New York laws are so terrible that we rank among the very worst among all 50 states in America for how the courts and criminal justice system treat survivors of child sex abuse.
Many of you have long been part of the battle to change our bad laws and I’m reaching out today to ask you, once again, to join me in Albany to let the Governor and State Legislators know you want them to act.
Our CVA Lobby Days are Tuesday and Wednesday, May 3 and May 4. The Tuesday program will include a roundtable where abuse in sports, schools and families will be discussed by a panel of experts and survivors. The second day has been inspired by the Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight” which helps us put the focus on hidden abuse in the Catholic Church and related SOL issues in NY State.
Our goal is to enact A2872A/A63A, which will completely eliminate the civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse offenses in the future. It also includes a one-year “window” where older victims can go to court against abusers and those who hid them. A companion bill A8567/S6436 will completely eliminate the criminal statute of limitations for these crimes.
Because of the strong support that CVA already has in the Assembly, with more than 60 co-sponsors, we want to concentrate lobbying activity on members of the State Senate during these two days.
I hope many of you will be able to come to Albany on May 3-4 to speak directly to our state government, but you do not have to wait to make your views known. Speak to the people at the very top by writing, emailing or calling our leaders. See the list attached for the names, addresses and telephone numbers.
Following is a schedule of key Lobby Day events.
Tuesday, May 3, Hearing Room B, NYS Legislative Office Building (LOB)
· 2:00 pm – CVA Press Conference, Hearing Room B.
· 2:45 pm – Roundtable, hosted by Assemblywoman Margaret Markey and State Senator Brad Hoylman. Moderated by Professor Marci Hamilton and featuring speakers and survivors discussing childhood sexual abuse and SOL issues in three sectors: Sports, Family, School/Youth Group settings.
· 5-6:00 pm – Informal reception for Roundtable participants, advocates and lobbyists. Albany Room, on the Concourse.
Wednesday, May 4, Hearing Room B, NYS Legislative Office Building
THEME: Academy Award-Winning Film “Spotlight” Puts Focus on Hidden Abuse in Catholic Church and Statute of Limitations Issues in New York
· 1:00 pm – CVA Press Conference
· 2:00 pm – Roundtable hosted by Assemblywoman Markey and Senator Hoylman on how the themes from this Academy Award-winning movie impact New York State and all of America. Moderated by Professor Marci Hamilton and including participation of Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer and figures from “Spotlight”. Other participants will include representatives from Bishops Accountability, Call to Action, Catholic Whistleblowers, SNAP as well as clerical sex abuse survivors.
· 5:00 pm – Screening of “Spotlight” for Lobby Day participants with special invitations to all members of the Senate and Assembly. (in location outside LOB building TBA)
It Takes A Village To Raise a Child,
…It Takes A Village To Rape A Child
“True Evil, Lies Not In The Depraved Act Of The One, But In The “Silence” Of The Many”.
PA ALERT: HB 1947 Passes the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority
/in Pennsylvania /by SOL Reform”PA ALERT: HB 1947 Passes the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority”
“Today is an historic day in Pennsylvania because the House has finally chosen to side with the victims of child sex abuse against those who caused it. HB 1947, which passed the House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority today, should be named the Hidden Predator Act, as it revives all expired SOLs for anyone under the age 50 permanently. No one in Pennsylvania under the age of 50 will be denied justice ever again under this bill. And no one who abused a child or created the conditions for abuse in Pennsylvania should feel secure in current anonymity or believe that the secrets they still hold will remain hidden.
The survivors (and the families of those who have not survived) can see some light at the end of the tunnel. It is now up to the Senate to choose: justice and child protection or injustice and child endangerment. There is no other accurate way to say it.
Revival legislation is powerful medicine for the sickness of a society that lets children be abused as powerful adults stand by. But it is not nearly as powerful as the Catholic Conference has painted it, as I document here in a relative comparison of revival legislation across the US.http://sol-reform.com/data/
I hope that victims and their families will now redouble their efforts to help the Pennsylvania Senate see the irrefutable logic of reviving expired SOLs for child sex abuse victims.” – Marci A. Hamilton, April 12, 2016