Keep in mind that laws intended to suspend the statute of limitations to allow people to sue the Catholic Church for abuse going back over decades are not being passed with victims of abuse in mind. If they were, the would be broad-based and would allow people to treat all institutions equally, public and private, including school systems. As I pointed out last week, a proposed Colorado law would exempt schools from such lawsuits.
Alejandro Bermudez reports that lawmakers crafting these bills are working hand-in-glove with plaintiffs’ attorneys who stand to make millions (more) if they can open up the floodgates. As I said before, statutes of limitations exist for a reason. Evidence grows old, memories fade, victims and alleged abusers pass away. It is universally acknowledge in our justice system that in some cases there should be a limit on how long you can wait before making your claim.
Abuse lawsuits are the new tobacco lawsuits: It is a growth industry for trial lawyers and their bought-and-paid-for politicians (who are usually lawyers themselves). This isn’t about justice. It’s often about greed.
Technorati Tags: Catholic, lawsuits, sex abuse, statute of limitations
Note that exempting government from such lawsuits eliminates a governmental incentive to keep such lawsuits from reaching the stratosphere in both number and cost.
Thanks for blogging on the Colorado legislation, Dom. I don’t know about Kevin, but we had a letter from Archbishop Chaput read at all the masses today on this topic.
I suspect that I won’t hear anything from my state reps on this issue, but at least they’ll hear from me.
I had the same letter read at mass. I might ask a few friends later on if it happened at the more “liberal” parish in my city. http://www.archden.org has the letter itself, plus lots of other information.