Netflix "The Keepers" Survivor Teresa Lancaster to MD Delegates: "Should this bill pass, legislators would be putting their stamp of approval on a dangerous excuse for failing to report. They would be undermining current law, which has protected children for 26 years. This would be an inexcusable, backward step."

Testimony in Opposition to SB 568/HB 787, Crimes--Child Abuse and Neglect--Failure to Report

March 27, 2019

My name is Teresa Lancaster. I am an attorney and a survivor who was featured in the Emmy-nominated documentary, The Keepers, currently on Netflix. I am also an activist and advocate for victims of sexual abuse.

I strongly oppose this bill. The proposed "actual knowledge" standard is so high that had it been in place during the Maskell scandal, no one could have been subject to prosecution for failing to report, had they suspected or even known about the terrible crimes that had occurred at Archbishop Keough High School when Maskell was there. Moreover, in accordance with the "actual knowledge" language, they would have been required to have seen for themselves the multiple rapes and the horrendous sexual abuse that took place in his office and failed to notify authorities before any prosecution could even be considered. It is clear in the child abuse literature that sexual abuse is not perpetrated in public. Consequently, I respectfully cannot understand, after all the scandals that have come to light, how supporters of this bill could claim that it would encourage reporting child abuse.

SB 568/HB 787 has been amended to make it worse. All this change would do is to undermine reporting based on suspected child abuse, which is the current standard in civil law. Legislators should ask themselves why no other state has such a standard in its reporting law.

I must emphasize that the part of the bill I find most offensive is Subsection C, because it undercuts an Attorney General opinion, 78 Md. Op. Atty. Gen. 189 [Dec.3, 1993]. This opinion finally required that the Archdiocese report to the authorities in my case, as well as the notorious Merzbacher case. Section C is a slap in the face to all the survivors of both of these scandals. Should this bill pass, legislators would be putting their stamp of approval on a dangerous excuse for failing to report. They would be undermining current law, which has protected children for 26 years. This would be an inexcusable, backward step.

Committee members must therefore, for the reasons above, look to their consciences and reject SB568/HB787.

Thank you for considering my views.

Lancaster Testimony (1) by on Scribd