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February 13, 2009
All About Kids
Several bills deal with childhood issues, from child sex abuse to Internet access.
Barbara Pash
Associate Editor
Companion bills to extend the statute of limitations in civil lawsuits relating to child sexual abuse have been introduced to the General Assembly in Annapolis. Senate Bill 238 and House Bill 556 would extend the deadline for filing alleged abuse actions up to 32 years from the date the victim legally became an adult.
Currently, if victims of alleged abuse were minors at the time, they can sue for damages within seven years of attaining the age of majority. In 2003, Sen. Delores Kelley (D-10th) successfully sponsored a bill that moved that age from 21 to 25. The current bills have a two-year retroactive period during which suits can be filed, by Jan. 1, 2012.
Ms. Kelley is the lead sponsor of SB 238, which has been heard in committee although no vote had been taken by press time. “We had a lot of people in their 60s testifying in favor of the bill,” she said. “They didn’t come forward before because the event is so traumatic and stigmatizing.”
Similar bills have been introduced in past legislative sessions, almost all unsuccessfully. Said Sen. James Brochin (D-42nd), who sponsored a bill on the issue two years ago and is a co-sponsor of SB 238, “People have a right to a trial in civil court. They have a right to face their alleged perpetrator.”
Moreover, in a trial a defendant must go through a process called “discovery,” at which time, said Mr. Brochin, “it can be determined if they still work around and with children.”
Del. Samuel I. “Sandy” Rosenberg (D-41st) is a co-sponsor of HB 556. Mr. Rosenberg’s reasons for signing on are similar to Mr. Brochin’s. “People are being harmed and are not able to get an appropriate remedy,” he said.
Given the failure of previous bills, Mr. Rosenberg was asked if he thinks this year’s bill will fare any better. “You always hope,” he replied.
No Early Release
A bill to prohibit convicted child sexual offenders from being released earlier than their full sentence has been introduced by Sen. Nancy Jacobs (R-34th).
“When we have a mandatory sentence without parole, you’d think that person is not getting out. But that’s not true,” Ms. Jacobs said of Senate Bill 422. “They can get good time credit, aka diminution credits,” for early release.
Ms. Jacobs said the issue came to her attention last year when a child sex offender who had been released because of good time credit entered a house in Baltimore County and attempted to drug two children sleeping in their bedroom. (The father awoke and was able to hold the intruder until police arrived.)
In the 2007 legislative session, Ms. Jacobs was instrumental in the passage of “Jessica’s Law,” which required a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years for child sexual abuse. “That got a lot of public support. The switchboards were flooded with phone calls,” said Ms. Jacobs, who ran a one-woman campaign to publicize the bill by appearing on radio talk shows.
Ms. Jacobs introduced a bill similar to SB 422 last year. It did not pass out of committee and among those opposing it were representatives from the prison system, who testified that earning good time credit is a deterrent to bad behavior.
Ms. Jacobs said she does not intend for that to happen this year. “You’ll be hearing from me on the talk shows in the morning,” she said.
Internet Control
A bill to promote online child safety through parental control has been introduced by Sen. Nancy King (D-39th). Senate Bill 550 would require specified Internet access providers to make parent controls available and to disseminate that information to parents.
Ms. King said she got the idea for the bill from one of the national legislative groups, which is pushing it as part of its priorities this year. Several states have passed similar legislation and Ms. Jacobs is working with Comcast, an Internet provider, to do the same in Maryland.
Sen. Robert A. Zirkin (D-11th) is a co-sponsor of the bill. He called it a “first step” in letting parents control what their children can access on the Internet.
Ms. King said SB 550 has wide support among senators. “They’ve wanted to do something about this for a long time,” she said.
