News and Society -Crime News Blog: Organizational Sexual Abuse ...

With all the child-abuse indictments appearing in the news these days (in Boy Scouts, churches, schools, football teams), the question is - are we and our organizational leaders failing them? Without saying, these crimes are subtle and difficult to handle to start with. They are cleverly camouflaged and done in secret. Also, major backlash can occur if people are accused falsely.

Such organizational issues also require legal protection from fraudulent lawsuits merely seeking money from them. Also, any unfounded accusations of suspects can become liabilities and lawsuits themselves. Thus, our leaders must carefully find valid evidence to fix them.

A real indictment

Recently, a Kansas City Star Newspaper editorial explained how a conscientious diocesan priest pursued a child-abuse allegation of a clergyman in 2004. Within days the suspect clergyman was confronted by his bishop, and was subsequently suspended from his duties at two parishes.

Less than a month later, however, an independent review by the diocese and local authorities concluded these allegations were unfounded - no real evidence. The suspect priest was then reassigned. Such investigations can bite back when done without enough evidence.

Seven years later (2011), the same investigative priest (now a much higher-ranking one) was indicted by the county prosecutor for not reporting suspected child abuse to the authorities as soon as required by law. The initial evidence in this case came from a computer repair technician who found a pornographic child photograph on the suspect clergyman's laptop. Yet, this slower investigation did turn up the needed evidence to prosecute the suspect. But the investigative priest was still indicted. Is this situational paradoxical?

Four factors considered in such situations

1. To investigate internally or from the outside. Organizational administrators probably should not be investigating their own administrators. Inherently, they could be too lenient. Also, if an investigation from the outside gets carried away, anyone inside could be prosecuted under flimsy charges. Still, the outside investigations do offset a common tendency for organizations to coverup abuse crimes.

2. Hard proof. To start an investigation, the administrative authorities need more proof than anonymous phone tips or inconsistent verbal evidence. Within many organizations, competitive attempts to defame people occur all the time. Thus, if a real investigation is warranted, it can move forward quietly with the simultaneous goals of getting the real proof while protecting the innocent. It can also prevent unnecessary entrapment.

A short abstract at the link below says 77% of the successful child-abuse prosecutions from a select study were done without physical evidence. Thus, the basic proof needed for such prosecutions include detailed affidavits, consistent verbal witnesses, diaries/journals, photographs on cameras/computers, recordings, and valid confessions.

3. Damage from scandal. Will the resultant charges affect the organization negatively? Will it cause scandal, damaged imagery, employment issues, membership and budget losses, or general destruction. Or, will it merely puncture its so-called image slightly, and then bring about a much better system thereafter?

4. Strong civil law. Certain organizations have strict guidelines for dealing and interacting with children. As a result, proven child-abuse criminals must be turned over to the authorities. Any internal notions of correcting child abusers through 1) scoldings/warnings and punishments, 2) rehabilitating them with medication and counseling, or 3) reassigning them where they can do no harm are no longer valid. Criminal acts do not correct themselves informally.

Conclusion. Too much systematic corruption and criminal coverup from child sex abuse has already occurred in organizations, leaving the victimized children and their families in the lurch. In the future, the top leaders of these organizations must prevent or stop these abuse crimes early. The proven child abusers must be immobilized and criminally tried in public view.

Legal Proof of Abuse - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1881730

Author contact: j__l__d

Source: http://newsandsociety-crimenews.blogspot.com/2012/02/organizational-sexual-abuse-of-children.html

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