Zirkin turned his back on child abuse victims

I was sad — but certainly not surprised — to learn of former state Sen. Bobby Zirkin’s about-face on his original 2019 stance regarding the passage of the Hidden Predator’s Act (”Catholic Church paid Maryland lobbyists more than $200K to help limit, prevent abuse lawsuits,” Dec. 8). He had the courage then to stand up to the Archdiocese of Baltimore and push legislation that would eliminate the statute of limitations regarding child sex abuse. But for the past three years, he’s been paid by the church to lobby against it. 

 In 1976, I first heard the catch phrase, “follow the money,” in the movie, “All The President’s Men,” about the Watergate burglary during the Richard Nixon White House years. Here is another example of a former state politician more interested in collecting a fee than what he at one time passionately believed to be the right thing to do. Why is it that money continues to override the decent thinking of today’s leaders? Can’t Zirkin collect fees lobbying for causes he truly believes in? I hope the former senator comes to his senses and stops his lobbying for the Archdiocese of Baltimore trying to maintain the statute of limitations on child sex abuse. 

There is another movie title I would like Zirkin to recall. This one is entitled, “Do the Right Thing.” — Mac Kennedy, Baltimore

Zirkin turned his back on child abuse victims | READER COMMENTARY – Baltimore Sun

Senate Bill 134: Maryland is poised to make great strides toward justice for survivors of childhood sexual abuse, their healing, the prevention of future abuse, and the ability to hold accountable individual perpetrators and institutions that might have facilitated them. Will you stand with us?

Find out how to advocate for Maryland Senate Bill 134 at this link.   

Senate_Hidden Predator Act ... by Parents' Coalition of Montg...

NMSC SCCAN Infographic 2021HiddenPredatorAct (19) by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland on Scribd

Md Sol One-pager 12.18.20 by Parents' Coalition of Montg...

Balt. Sun on H.B. 974: Hidden Predator Act of 2020

Synopsis: Allows adult victims of child sexual abuse to file “an action for damages” at any time, regardless of how long ago the incidents occurred.

Analysis: This bill was first introduced last year by Del. C.T. Wilson of Charles County, himself a survivor of child sexual abuse, and it sailed through the House only to be crushed in the Senate — the victim of a 5-5 deadlock in that body’s Judicial Proceedings Committee, when progressive Democrat Jill Carter unexpectedly sided with four conservative Republicans to kill it.

Indeed, the bill has had strong opposition, most of it coming from the Catholic Church, no doubt terrified by the monsoon of lawsuits and settlement conferences that could result from such a law change, as well as a provision within the bill that would open a two-year window for those who were previously barred from suing to do so retroactively...

Editorial board recommendation: Pass...

https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/editorial/bs-ed-0228-sexual-assault-bills-20200228-zgyitsczyjcxdj4z3cckwciysq-story.html?fbclid=IwAR0iVnDK52ADE_xcHio9s-S1Efy3EhHwV2AKpoJb5un6csvjRbFi-s3WCBo

Breaking: Maryland lawmakers use unusual maneuver to revive bill on child abuse lawsuits

An effort to give survivors of child sexual abuse more time to file lawsuits that failed in the Maryland Senate has been resurrected by the House of Delegates.

Democratic Del. C.T. Wilson’s bill to remove a statute of limitations for lawsuits rising from child sexual abuse had sailed through the House, but died in a deadlocked Senate committee.

The defeat frustrated Wilson and abuse survivors.

So, the House Judiciary Committee, in an unusual move, took many elements of Wilson’s bill and tacked them Saturday onto an unrelated bill from Sen. Justin Ready — a Carroll County Republican who is one of the senators who voted against the abuse lawsuit bill in committee.

...

The House adopted the amendments and moved the revised measure forward to a final vote on Monday — the final day of the 90-day General Assembly session. Any changes to the bill would need to be approved by the Senate in order to send the measure to the governor.

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Ready was among five senators who voted against Wilson’s bill in the Judicial Proceedings Committee, citing questions about its constitutionality.

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Zirkin said he supports both bills and hopes a conference committee will work out a compromise where both measures can be enacted.

https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-abuse-bill-revived-20190406-story.html

Md. Senate panel rejects effort to give childhood sex abuse victims more flexibility to sue

A Senate panel has voted down a bill that would have let childhood sex abuse victims of any age sue institutions that harbored their attackers.

The legislation, proposed amid a global clergy sex abuse scandal, had passed the House of Delegates overwhelmingly last month. But the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee declined to advance it on Wednesday, with one Democrat joining the committee’s four Republicans in voting it down.

The bill had become a heightened source of controversy in Annapolis after its lead sponsor accused the Catholic Church of swindling himinto a deal that may have granted the organization irreversible immunity from sex abuse cases that happened decades ago.

The deal, part of a 2017 law extending the civil statute of limitations, was a key reason cited by a senator who voted against this year’s proposal...

...Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles), the bill’s sponsor and himself a victim of childhood sex abuse at the hands of his adoptive father, was shaking in anger after the committee vote. He said the lawmakers who voted down the bill were complicit in helping institutions protect predators...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/maryland-panel-votes-down-effort-to-give-more-rights-to-childhood-sex-abuse-victims/2019/04/03/df60045e-565d-11e9-9136-f8e636f1f6df_story.html?utm_term=.747f9d7fde2c

Bill to lift limits on child sex abuse lawsuits in Maryland fails

A bill that would have enabled untold numbers of child sexual abuse survivors to file civil lawsuits in Maryland has been defeated.

The Senate’s Judicial Proceedings Committee on Wednesday deadlocked 5-5 on the measure, which would have eliminated the statute of limitations for civil claims related to child sexual abuse. The bill had already sailed through the House of Delegates.

The committee vote infuriated Del. C.T. Wilson, the bill’s sponsor and a survivor of child abuse himself. “They did their best to protect pedophiles,” an angry Wilson said in an interview after the vote.

Wilson observed the committee’s voting session, which he said featured a “tornado” of misinformation about the law and his bill.

Even though Wilson was present, he said none of the senators asked him questions about his bill. He said senators were “cowards” not to discuss the bill with him...

https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-abuse-limits-bill-20190403-story.html

When Maryland gave abuse victims more time to sue, it may have also protected institutions, including the Catholic Church

Two years ago, Maryland lawmakers made it easier for adults sexually abused as children to sue institutions that harbored predators.

They may have also irreversibly granted some immunity to the Catholic Church.

A provision tucked into a 2017 law now stands in the way of Maryland joining a nationwide effort to bring justice to victims who come to terms with childhood abuse when they reach middle age and, for decades, have had no recourse in civil courts.

The language was pushed by lobbyists for the Catholic Church two years ago as part of a compromise to extend Maryland’s civil statute of limitations from age 25 to 38. Because it forbids the state from raising the maximum age above 38, it effectively inoculates the church and other organizations from costly lawsuits that could reveal whether they sheltered abusers decades ago.

State lawmakers who heralded the 2017 compromise as a breakthrough for victims now say they were swindled.

“I made a deal with the devil,” said Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles), the sponsor of the 2017 law and a survivor of child sex abuse by his adoptive father.

“I was working with them in good faith,” Wilson, a lawyer, said of the church. “They were behind the scenes, crafting language that protects them forever.”..

...In interviews, several other lawmakers who negotiated the compromise recalled the two church lobbyists who shopped the repose provision, saying they did not want to repeatedly revisit extending the statute of limitations. The lawmakers said they now believe they unwittingly agreed to language that could permanently prevent anyone born before the early 1980s from suing the church...

...Permanent immunity “was never discussed,” said Del. Vanessa E. Atterbeary, (D-Howard), a lawyer who is vice chair of the Judiciary Committee.

“I was in meetings with the Archbishop of Baltimore,” she said. “That’s the sort of conversation I would have remembered.”

Church lobbyist John Stierhoff declined to comment on how the provision got into law. Mary Ellen Russell, the executive director of the Maryland Catholic Conference at the time, declined to comment because she no longer works for the organization...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/when-maryland-gave-abuse-victims-more-time-to-sue-it-may-have-also-protected-institutions-including-the-catholic-church/2019/03/31/769537ca-4f3a-11e9-911a-7d51996d6f38_story.html?utm_term=.0f424f458a8b

Delegate, Survivors Push to End Limitations on Child Sex Abuse Claims

Dozens of sexual assault survivors filled the seats of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on Thursday afternoon as the panel considered a measure to get rid of the statute of limitations for filing civil lawsuits. And after emotional testimony from Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles), a survivor of abuse himself, they stood up behind him in silent solidarity.

Some of the survivors, wearing all white, carried pictures of their younger selves. Jena Cochrane held a photo of herself, at 12 years old, wearing a red dress with white lace trim and a flower in her hair. Six months later she would be raped, changing her life forever.

Though she has testified on bills as an advocate for children in the past, this year is the first time Cochrane shared her own story with lawmakers. She wants them to understand why abuse victims may take years to come to terms with what happened before seeking justice in civil courts.

“You as a victim sometimes get a life sentence, while the law protects perpetrators with a statute of limitations,” Cochrane said. “That’s not fair. We want an opportunity so that when we’re brave enough to come forward, we have a platform to speak.”

Wilson has sponsored House Bill 687, or the Hidden Predator Act of 2019. The bill would get rid of the state’s statute of limitations for civil claims against perpetrators of child sex abuse – and would also include a two-year look-back window, a time in which victims could bring claims in cases where the previous statute of limitations has expired...

https://www.marylandmatters.org/2019/03/29/delegate-survivors-push-to-end-limitations-on-child-sex-abuse-claims/

Delegate C.T. Wilson Before Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Presenting Hidden Predator Act of 2019

Listen to Delegate C.T. Wilson's advocacy on behalf of children who have been sexually abused.

Delegate Wilson is attempting to have Maryland eliminate the Statute of Limitations in civil cases involving the sexual abuse of children, and to allow for a two year "look back" window for these victims.

If you watched the Netflix documentary "The Keepers" you will recognize Delegate Wilson.  He was the Maryland legislator in the final episodes of "The Keepers" who exposed that the Maryland legislature has been covering for the crimes of the Catholic Church for decades by preventing legislation that would aid victims from even being heard or voted on.

Will the Maryland legislature continue to cover for the Catholic Church in 2019?

Delegate C.T. Wilson speaking today before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.

Advocates For Victims Of Child Sex Abuse Urge Lawmakers To Lift Statute Of Limitations For Reporting Abuse

MoCo Delegate Kathleen Dumais references MD Catholic Conference law firm letter to Oppose bill. Then says she is "not defending the Catholic Church."

On March 16, 2019, Montgomery County Delegate and Majority Leader Kathleen Dumais attempted to have the Maryland House amend House Bill 687 - Hidden Predator Act of 2019, to remove the provision that would allow past victims to file civil claims under a two year "look back" window.  

In Delegate Dumais' presentation of her amendment she referenced multiple letters from the Venable LLC law firm.  

The Venable LLC law firm wrote to the Maryland Catholic Conference in January of this year on the same topic as Dumais' amendment.  

Delegate Dumais' amendment failed in the House by a vote of 3-131.  In defense of her amendment, Delegate Dumais stated "...it's not the Catholic Church. I'm not defending the Catholic Church. I could never defend the Catholic Church, what the Catholic Church has been doing for centuries..."

The video below is the audio from March 16, 2019, with clips of Delegate Dumais' statements with regard to the Venable LLC letters and the Catholic Church. 

Guest Post: Abbie Schaub of "The Keepers" on MD Bill to eliminate Statute of Limitations in Civil Cases re: Sexual Abuse of Children #Netflix

The New Jersey legislature just passed a bill allowing adults who were sexually abused as minors to file civil lawsuits until age 55, and also added a unique inclusion saying anyone can file a suit up until the age of 55 OR seven years after they make “the discovery” connecting emotional and psychological injury to their abuse. That phrase creates a 7 year window when anyone regardless of age can file a civil suit. Took them two decades to get that done due to opposition from the Catholic Church. I think nine states have opened some form of limited time window that allow civil lawsuits for damages done in the past regardless of someone’s age.

Meanwhile in Maryland, current SOL [Statute of Limitations] law bans civil lawsuits by anyone harmed if they are older than 38. Maryland House Bill 687, the Hidden Predator Act of 2019, has passed the House and is in the Senate. This bill will abolish time limits going forward for people sexually abused as minors but that would not help anyone harmed before the bill passes. It has an amendment creating a two year window during which those older than 38 now could file civil lawsuits. The Archdiocese of Baltimore, The Archdiocese of Washington DC and the Wilmington, Delaware diocese (all three have parts of Maryland under their domains) fund a professional lobbying group called the Maryland Catholic Conference which is working to defeat the bill. It seems language banning retroactive windows was slipped into a footnote as codified language on the 2017 Statutes of Limitations, unknown to us as was not in the bill itself. First senate hearing will be in afternoon session of the Senate Judiciary Process group [March 28, 2019]  and I and others will attend - not allowed to give testimony as only bill sponsor [Delegate] CT WIlson can do that.

With clergy sexual abuse of minors, most people harmed will never speak of it; it’s estimated only 6% ever do, and the average

“age of disclosure” in one study was thought to be 52 years old.

They are not asking for rules of evidence to be changed, or special treatment in the court system - they are asking for what I thought was an American right - for their day in court to present their case. Right now, arbitrary time limits designed to protect the abusers and organizations which foster them ban them from civil action. This is unfair and needs to be corrected.

Abbie Schaub

Jane Doe and Jane Roe Call for an End to Maryland Statute of Limitations on Abuse Claims

March 17, 2019:

https://www.wmar2news.com/homepage-showcase/jane-doe-and-jane-roe-call-for-end-to-statute-of-limitations-on-abuse-claims?fbclid=IwAR0vin3mQI-gVNEHYyY4_wnYuN-D1RRW7QrYieic_MCCeADcDwc4KhSjWWk

AUDIO: Del. C.T. Wilson, "We have a habit in Maryland of protecting these institutions...This is an emergency...Up to us to do something about it...Don't reward sneaky behavior." @votectwilson .@KathleenDumais1

Delegate C.T. Wilson, "Maryland has become a dumping ground for pedophile priests."

The video below is the audio feed from the Maryland House of Delegates on March 16, 2019, when Delegate Kathleen Dumais attempted to amend part of Delegate C.T. Wilson's bill to eliminate and extend the Statute of Limitations in civil suits concerning the sexual abuse of children.

Listen to Delegate CT Wilson as he responds to Delegate Kathleen Dumais' attempt to amend his bill.

Listen to the Delegate that says, "In a good faith manner in a very clear, honest and direct way we have tried to establish our legislative intent that we want to open up our courts for an examination, for an attempt to bring justice to children who were sexually abused.  We should speak with that widely and clearly in a bipartisan fashion with one voice.  We want to give those victims every opportunity possible to present their claims."

Montgomery County Delegate Kathleen Dumais presents an amendment to HB 687 that would eliminate the "look back" window in the bill. Delegate CT Wilson and others defend the bill and the provision. Delegate Kathleen Dumais' amendment was rejected 3 - 131.

Listen to the end.  There is a break and the audio is silent while votes are being cast.