Sexual Misconduct

Children are seen by many as our greatest national resource, and they should be given every opportunity to develop properly into adults who are contributing members of our society. This has been the case for hundreds of years in the United States, and there are many institutions in place to help those children who need it because of unfortunate circumstances in their home lives.

Sadly, some of these institutions that were meant to provide nothing but support and ongoing benefits to those children have come under intense scrutiny in recent years for reasons that are nothing short of shocking. That burgeoning issue is sexual misconduct, and it’s being alleged against those who for decades were given every benefit of the doubt.

Below are three examples of these entities that have drawn the ire of legislatures, courts and the public at large because of scurrilous scandals that have arisen around the United States:

Church clergy – The clergymen who have been brought to the public’s attention in recent years not only shocked the conscious of American society at large, but as lawsuits were filed, criminal charges filed in some cases and investigative reporters dug deeper, even more scandalous accusations of institution-wide cover-ups began to surface.
Boys and girls homes – Boys and girls homes are generally charitable entities that are set up to provide ‘safe havens’ for those at-risk or in-danger children who needed them. Their mission was/is to provide the guidance and help necessary to any child who needs to escape his or her present circumstances of abuse and/or utter neglect. Sadly, allegations of sexual misconduct in these sorts of facilities have also come to the forefront at an alarming rate in recent years.
Foster homes – Foster homes are not private organizations or charitable entities, but rather are generally functions of the state and local governments in which these foster homes are located. Foster homes are in place to provide children who the state deems should not continue to reside with parents or existing guardians with a place to live and be safe until a long-term solution can be reached. However, as was/is the case with the two entities above, shocking accusations of sexual misconduct have arisen in recent years all over the United States.

Church clergy

Anyone who is born into a religious family learns from almost birth that those who are empowered to deliver the message of their chosen deity are to be trusted unconditionally and obeyed without question, as these people are seen by those who follow them as direct conduits to those figures they worship. While this has always been the case in many cultures, that only increases the damage that’s done when something goes wrong.

In fact, things went very wrong over the decades, and in the early part of the 21st Century, many reports began to surface that dealt with church clergy and sexual misconduct. Although many different religions and faiths deal with this issue, the most prominent religion scrutinized with the issue of church clergy misconduct was the Roman Catholic Church, and the statistics, while admittedly fuzzy given how many never admitted to these acts, are stunning.

In 2004, John Jay College released a report on the Catholic Church and the issue of sexual misconduct by the church clergy. The report stated that there were at least 10,000 victims of sexual abuse by church clergy in the previous 50 years, and at least 4,000 clergy members had been guilty of such an act. Many other estimates were much higher.

Regardless of the actual numbers, thousands of people were victimized. If this includes you or someone you love, you may have the right to pursue a legal claim. Contact a sexual misconduct lawyer immediately to schedule an initial consultation and to get the process of evaluating and, if advisable, enforcing your legal rights started.

Boys and girls homes

One of the unfortunate realities of modern society is that many children simply fall through the cracks, so to speak. Their homes may be broken, their parents may be troubled or saddled with all sorts of different problems, or these children may simply make the ill-advised decision to run away from home at an early age.

One of the many ways in which society in general has reacted to this ubiquitous problem is by offering shelter for these children by way of boys and girls homes, most of which are charitable and non-profit in nature. These homes are a safe haven for many who have nowhere else to turn, but they can also turn into any child’s nightmare.

In recent years, there have been more and more alarming reports of sexual abuse at boys and girls homes around the United States, and the reasons for this rise are many in number. One of the reasons most prominently mentioned is that these entities, like most non-profit organizations, are forced to work within incredibly tight budget constraints and must depend on volunteers to staff the facilities. Many boys and girls homes also simply lack the resources necessary to perform full background checks on volunteers and/or employees.

As a result, children are being victimized at a time when they are the most vulnerable, and when this occurs, the psychological fallout can be severe and long-term in nature. If you or someone you love has been a victim of this sort of abuse in a boys and girls home, you need to contact a sexual misconduct attorney as soon as possible to schedule an initial consultation.

Foster homes

Not all children are born into safe and nurturing home environments. In fact, many are born into an environment that’s just the opposite. For many reasons, including drug abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, financial shortfalls and the like, children are removed from their ‘natural’ homes and placed into care that’s designed to keep them safe and to improve their daily lives.

One of the most common outlets for state and local governments to use in such situations is the option of foster homes. Foster homes are loosely governed and regulated by local governments, and foster parents agree to take children into their existing homes and to receive some financial benefits meant to be paid to care for these children who usually have no other options.

Unfortunately, there appears to be a growing problem with children in foster homes, and this problem undoubtedly leads to difficulties that these children experience later in life, including prison time and drug addiction, among other things. This problem is sexual abuse in foster homes, and while statistics can be found, many are simply not reliable because it’s widely believed that many of these instances are not reported.

Regardless of the statistics, if you or someone you love has been the victim of sexual abuse in any of the foster homes that exist in the United States, you need to take action to hold those responsible for your suffering accountable. Not only will you have an opportunity to recover damages for your injuries both physical and psychological, but you may also prevent the sexual abuse of children in foster homes in the future. Contact a sexual misconduct attorney as soon as possible to schedule an initial consultation.

What it all Means

The issue of sexual misconduct within these sorts of facilities or any others means several things to those who suffer from such conduct. First, the emotional and psychological scarring that occurs with a victim of sexual misconduct may be different within each individual in terms of short and long-term damage done, but one commonality is that the damage is deep and extremely negative in its overall impact.

Secondly, what this also means is that if you or someone you love has been victimized by this terrible plague, you need to act quickly to enforce your rights. Contact a sexual misconduct lawyer as soon as possible to schedule an initial consultation, as you do have rights that need to be protected and enforced.