News & Events

A new state law is providing a two-year window for victims of child sexual abuse to sue for damages, no matter how long ago the abuses occurred in Hawaii.And some attorneys say such lawsuits could not only expose offenders, but also encourage other victims to come forward with claims that might lead to criminal prosecution.”It’s historic in terms of public policy,” said Jeff Anderson, a St. Paul, Minn.-based attorney who has represented victims of sexual abuse across the country. “It’s one of the most important public policy developments that can be made in this state and in this country…

Every year Minnesota’s child protection staff screen in approximately
18,000 reports of child maltreatment for review. Nearly 70% of these
are assigned to the state’s voluntary Family Assessment program. Though
the purpose of the program is to promote family stability and child
safety, recent data indicates that few families receive any services.Family
Assessment has been in place in Minnesota for 10 years. It’s the
state’s name for a national trend in child protection practices called
‘Differential Response.’ These programs offer families the opportunity
to work voluntarily…

Washington (CNN) — U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and European Union Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmstrom will launch a new effort to fight child sexual abuse at a ministers meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday.”The initiative aims to unite decision-makers all around the world to better identify and assist victims and to prosecute the perpetrators,” the Justice Department said in a press release.The initiative will be called the Global Alliance against Child Sexual Abuse Online.Participating nations pledge to pursue several goals, including enhancing efforts to investigate…

The documentary Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, is spellbinding for its crisp focus on the tragic fate of boys at St. John’s School for the Deaf in St. Francis, Wisconsin, who were preyed upon by school Director Fr. Lawrence Murphy, who ran the school.  The film segues between these more domestic scenes and the exotic, luxurious scenery of the Vatican, where the Popes and the cardinals failed to stop Murphy (and other pedophiles such as the infamous Rev. Marcial Maciel), and who are as responsible as Murphy is for the victims’ lifelong suffering.The cold, snowy Wisconsin…

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In the three months since Bishop Robert W. Finn became the first American prelate convicted of failing to report a pedophile priest, lay people and victims’ advocates have repeatedly called for his resignation. Now, recent interviews and a private survey by a company working for the Roman Catholic diocese here show for the first time that a significant number of the bishop’s own priests have lost confidence in him. Bishop Finn, who oversees the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, is serving two years of court-supervised probation after his conviction in September on a single …

Valley News Live – KVLY/KXJB – Fargo/Grand Forks
It’s a case that may sound all too familiar. A high profile teacher and coach, for more than 30 years, accused of sexual abuse on a number of victims.It was a case brought to officials two years ago,but nothing was ever done. Now things are once again being investigated in Bemidji, Minnesota.It was here at Central Elementary school in Bemidji,Minnesota where the allegations of abuse took place. A victims mother says she brought her concerns to police two years ago but charges were never filed. Now, more victims have come forward and the case ha…

Los Angeles school officials failed to promptly report nearly 150 cases of suspected teacher misconduct — including allegations of sexual contact with students — to state authorities as required by law, an audit released Thursday concluded.The findings come 10 months after the Los Angeles Unified School District was rocked by the arrest of a teacher at Miramonte Elementary School for allegedly spoon-feeding semen to students in a classroom.At the time, district officials acknowledged that they did not swiftly send all serious misconduct allegations to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, w…

NEW YORK — Increased public awareness of how child predators operate, along with better law enforcement and policies to protect children, may be helping to reduce child sex abuse despite this year’s headlines about cases connected to institutions like Penn State, the Boy Scouts and the BBC.A recent report from the University of New Hampshire’s Crimes Against Children Research Center found incidents of child sexual abuse have been declining in the U.S. for 20 years, with some statistics showing decreases as steep as 60 percent.The findings may be surprising given the high-profile cases in the…

The former Shattuck-St. Mary’s teacher accused of sexual misconduct with a student more than three decades ago was seen in court Wednesday morning, just two days after he posted bail.Joseph Carl Machlitt, 63, arrived at the courthouse Wednesday wearing dress pants, a button-up shirt and v-neck vest — a change from the orange jail jumpsuit he sported a week ago for his arraignment. Court records show Machlitt posted non-cash bail on Monday, the same day attorney Anthony Torres faxed a letter of representation to the court.Torres asked for the hearing — scheduled as an initial appearance — to…

After months of anticipation, a 17-year-old girl took the stand in the sexual abuse trial of a respected counselor from an ultra-orthodox Jewish community that authorities say has historically avoided such prosecutions by keeping members quiet.In a packed courtroom filled mostly with her supporters, the teen took the stand against Nechemya Weberman, an unlicensed religious counselor in the Satmar community, an ultra-orthodox sect of Judaism.Weberman is accused of sexually abusing the girl dozens of times in his home and office over a three-year span beginning when she was 12 years old. The gir…