Settlement fund could pay hundreds—or hundreds of thousands—for the same abuse
— Read on www.wsj.com/us-news/why-payouts-are-all-over-the-map-for-boy-scout-sexual-abuse-victims-c78cd5df
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Can the legal system in this nation get nothing right? Statutes of limitation in sexual assault cases are just strategies to give some degree of protection to individuals and institutions with power and privilege. They distract from the cold reality that some Boy Scouts did disclose in a timely fashion, but were not listened to, not believed, or believed and then ignored. It also distracts from the fact that in their unique ways other institutions, from the family to the church, exerted their own influences on kids’ decisions to disclose.
The Netflix doc ‘Scout’s Honor’ does a commendable job in dissecting this.
The U.S. legal system is getting less and less right these days. But yes, statutes of limitations in sexual assault cases are and have always been a layer of protection for people and institutions with power and privilege. Rape victims of any age don’t have lobbyists. The Catholic church, the Boy Scouts, Michigan State University, the U of M–they all do, as well as a legal staff. Statutes of limitations in sexual assault cases, abuse of bankruptcy provisions to avoid paying settlements, the doctrines of qualified and absolute immunity; all are manipulated to hammer the victimized and protect institutional thugs and their employees.
“Scout’s Honor” is excellent and “Spotlight” is another film that shows how the legal system is stacked against victims of sexual abuse.