Politics, Religion, Society

Church Secures Exemption from Proposed Arizona Law To Eliminate Statute of Limitations for Child Abuse

Arizona State lawmakers in the Senate approved a measure to get rid of the statute of limitation for victims of child abuse to file lawsuits. However, this lifetime right to sue has one notable exception: for the church and school districts. If you are suing the Church for its failure to act to stop a pedophile, you still only have two years.

The lobbyist for the Catholic Church admits that he has been pushing for the exception.

The elimination of the statute of limitations only covers defendant’s “direct or intentional conduct.”

Ron Johnson, who lobbies on behalf of the state’s three Catholic bishops, says that the exception is needed to allow the Church (as well as businesses and schools) to buy insurance. I question that rationale. It would appear that insurance rates could be higher — particularly for organizations with a history of ignoring or covering up child abuse. Moreover, even if the Church cannot cover child abuse in a policy, it can avoid liability by not covering up such cases.

For the full story, click here.

19 thoughts on “Church Secures Exemption from Proposed Arizona Law To Eliminate Statute of Limitations for Child Abuse”

  3. Rafflaw….
    I completely agree, but it would certainly be a cheap method of Asexual breeding, that silly Buddah, taking the fun out of everything…lol

  7. Exempting churches and school districts from AZ’s change to the statute of limitation for victims of child abuse is quite literally … damnable.

  8. raff,

    I’m just trying to help them over that whole “be fruitful and multiply”/”sex is a sin” silliness. Talk about walking a thin line! But alas, there may be too much conflict inside some people’s heads to be reconciled.

  9. Asexual breeding? Buddha, that is deep stuff! I was thinking that the Evangelicals in Congress breed like rabbits. At least the ones who aren’t still in the closet.

  10. True.

    Everyone knows that Evangelical Christians breed by asexual budding, Mike.

    Just like Pod People.

  11. Mike, I am sure that the residents of C Street SE were shocked, shocked to find that sex was happening on the premises.

  12. Vince, are you saying that the IRS does not recognize a bawdy house exemption?

  15. We broke the C Street property tax story here at the Turley blog last June 26, 2009 at 10:09 am:

    http://jonathanturley.org/2009/06/26/stimulating-sex-russ-limbaugh-blames-sanford-affair-on-obama-economic-policies/#comment-64072

    When the DC tax office finally acted to cut back on the exemption, Josh Marshal’s Talking Points Memo picked it up and gave this blog credit:

    http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/c_street_house_no_longer_tax_exempt.php

    Now the good news is that the IRS aspect may be examined.

  16. Another so called “church” is finding its “exemption” under fire today. The conservative flop house at 133 C Street SE in Washington DC is now under siege at the IRS for claiming favored tax treatment.

    The WashPost has the story today:
    quoteson
    C Street house target of clergy’s IRS complaint

    By Peter Slevin
    Washington Post Staff Writer
    Tuesday, February 23, 2010

    The owners of a $1.8 million townhouse on Capitol Hill that has been home and refuge to conservative members of Congress are wrongly claiming a federal tax exemption reserved for religious establishments, 13 Ohio clergy members contend in a complaint to the Internal Revenue Service.

    The clergy suspect that the C Street Center, which rents living space to lawmakers, is “an exclusive club for powerful officials . . . masquerading as a church,” according to a request for an investigation addressed to IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman.

    The Ohio clergy, all Protestant members of Clergy Voice, say that the house serves no public interest and has no recognized creed or form of worship.

    The 130-year-old brick townhouse at 133 C St. SE. drew unwelcome publicity and the scrutiny of D.C. tax authorities last summer, after South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford (R) said while confessing an extramarital affair on national television that he had sought spiritual advice there. Residents say they share meals and Bible study.

    Soon after, it emerged that a resident of the house, Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), was having an affair with the wife of a former aide. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a colleague and fellow resident, said he met the cuckolded husband at the house and worked to end the affair and save Ensign’s marriage.

    And former Rep. Charles W. “Chip” Pickering Jr., a Mississippi Republican, entertained his mistress there, according to court papers filed by his estranged wife. endquote
    Source:
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/22/AR2010022204511.html

  17. To paraphrase Orwell, and with incredible aptness when considering this class of tortfeasor: All pigs are equal, but some pigs are more equal than others.

  18. My take on this after reading the article is the church is protected by the SOL. The Priest/person can still be gone after. I wonder if this has anything to do with the reason that AZ is and was a clearing house for ped priests. They would be transferred to AZ or DE to be processed and counseled. As soon as they were cleared they would be put back in service.

  19. Another fine example of graft making sure that the law becomes lawless and inequitable.

    “If the FBI’s motivating factor for busting down the Koresh compound was child abuse, how come we never see Bradley tanks smashing into Catholic churches?” – Bill Hicks

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