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Increasing Awareness of Sexual Abuse Within Institutions  


Author:  Karen  Terry.


Source: Volume 14, Number 01, December/January 2013 , pp.1-3(3)




Sex Offender Law Report

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Abstract: 

The case of Jerry Sandusky has been pivotal in that it has led to a reassessment of how leaders of an institution should respond to abuse, and what should happen to them if they do not respond appropriately. In the case of the Catholic Church, the Causes and Context study showed that many church officials did respond to abuse, but only to help the priest and not to help the victims overcome the harm that was done to them. The era of inaction is over, and institutions must implement policies on how to respond appropriately to allegations of sexual abuse. Child sexual abuse within institutions will never, unfortunately, disappear. However, there is no excuse today for leaders of any institution to allow abusers to remain in a position of authority and to ignore the needs of the victims.

Keywords: Institutional response to abuse; universities; schools; child care; social organizations; sports organizations; religious organizations

Affiliations:  1: John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

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