The Worthy Adversary

Category: Penn State

  • Institutions need to get out of the sex abuse investigation business

    Your question of the day:

    You see a child being sexually abused and beaten on a street corner. Whom do you call? Answer: The local university, your bishop, your commander or the leader of the closest nonprofit.

    Ridiculous? Of course it is. Utterly absurd? Yes. Child endangerment? You bet. So let’s try again with the correct answer: You call law enforcement. Why? Because law enforcement is in the investigation business. Universities, churches, corporate entities and other nonprofits are NOT.

    So why do we act so absurdly when we witness abuse on the Penn State campus, at the local parish, or a college campus? Because we were (wrongly) told and convinced it is the right thing to do.

    We need to re-calibrate our thinking: institutions should never be in the sex abuse investigation business. When it comes to crime, our loyalty is to justice and accountability, not institutions.

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    We don’t ask the police to engineer technological innovation, make money for investors, create jobs, help make the US a leader in international business, or work towards nonprofit social good. We ask them to solve crimes. So why do we ask corporations to investigate sexual abuse?

    The Corporate Model

    Institutions are corporations FIRST – whether the corporation be the Catholic Church, Penn State, or the Boy Scouts. Victims and the public must understand that the loyalties of the officers of the corporations legally reside with the institution. That is the primary obligation of corporate officers. This is good thing – until it comes to self-policing and sexual abuse. Investigating sexual abuse by an agent of the corporation or by someone over whom the corporation has control is in direct contradiction to this obligation – especially if the results are harmful to the corporation.

    Maliciously or not, these corporations have set up internal reporting and investigation systems to protect themselves and remain in business – protecting jobs, innovation and investors.

    The military has a term for why internal investigations protect the institution – unlawful command influence, or UCI. Often called the “mortal enemy of military justice,” UCI happens when people in positions of power exert undue and wrongful influence (sometimes even accidentally) that affects the investigation and outcome of military trials. Most recently, the term has been used to describe the problem with sexual assault in the military, whether the influence keeps victims from getting justice, or impedes the ability of the accused to get a fair hearing, internal review, or in some cases, court martial.

    In the case of corporate entities, it’s about protecting the institution.

    Case in point: Jerry Sandusky. Penn State officials did not report to law enforcement because they felt that the adverse publicity would hurt both Penn State and the football program. Instead, they pretended to follow an internal reporting structure that broke down.

    Had someone just picked up the phone and called the cops, who knows how many victims could have been spared?

    Protections Against Civil Liability

    Another duty of corporate officers is to protect the corporation against civil liability. In general business, this usually forces a corporate entity to buy insurance, obey the law, and oversee processes. But in the case of sexual abuse investigation, this means the entity doesn’t wants victims coming back and suing the corporation for wrong doing. For example, in the Catholic Church, documents released in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles showed how Cardinal Mahony and others high ranking officials consciously moved to ensure that civil and criminal statutes of limitations would expire before victims sought help and justice.

    In the Diocese of Orange, church officials lied to parishioners about accusations against priests such as Michael Pecharich and others, in the hopes that victims would not come forward during a 2003 civil window in the statute of limitations. In this case, diocese officials allowed Pecharich to tell parishioners there was one “boundary violation” with a teen. Yet all along, the diocese was in possession of serious sexual abuse complaints against Pecharich. They hoped that by creating a ruse, they would protect the corporate church, mitigate liability, and get parishioners on their side.

    And guess what? These actions were all under the auspices of internal review boards.

    UCI in the Catholic Church

    There is no institution in the United States to whom we give more deference than the Catholic Church. Presidents sit next to high ranking bishops at the Al Smith Dinner, begging for the photo op that will give them boosts in the polls. Bishops exert great influence over state legislatures and have the instant capability to call lawmakers on their personal cell phones. They use the Bully Pulpit and the flock to try and kill victim-friendly laws, while also spending millions on lobbyists to ensure that victims of abuse are denied access to the courts. They use their implied moral superiority and “access to God” to scare and shame Catholics from coming forward about abuse and evidence.

    That’s some pretty scary stuff. It makes the military look like kindergarten.

    There is also no corporation who relies so heavily upon internal investigations of sexual abuse.

    Case in point: Kansas City Bishop Robert Flynn was convicted of criminal child endangerment last year because he protected the corporation, shielded a sex offender, and forced others to obey his “internal investigation structure.” Yet, he is still the leader of the area’s Catholics, even though he could not pass his own background check. As bishop, Flynn is still the moral and religious leader of the area’s Catholics, who, by church law, must obey him completely. He can deny Catholics communion and access to heaven. He can excommunicate those who disagree with him. Simply put, he holds compete power over Kansas City’s Catholics’ access to God.

    We know where Flynn’s true loyalty is, and it ain’t with the flock, kids or God.

    The Accused Are Thrown Under the Bus, Too

    Internal investigations of sexual abuse cases hurt more than just victims. At West Point, an internal investigation and UCI intervention (after a court marital found a cadet not guilty of assault) is threatening to destroy a young cadet’s future. The inability of bishops worldwide to come clean on sexual abuse by priests has cast a shadow of guilt on every man wearing a clerical collar.

    When you deny victims access to criminal and civil justice, you deny EVERYONE access to justice. Even the accused.

    So Now What?

    Who suffers when corporations internally investigate sexual abuse by agents, employees and other stakeholders? Everyone. Victims are disenfranchised and denied justice, wrong-doers go free, other accused are denied access to defense, and cover-up becomes the order of the day.

    If you have been abused, or have seen or suspected abuse, call law enforcement, no matter how long ago the abuse occurred. Investigate your rights in the civil justice system. Refuse to report to internal review systems in churches, schools and other institutions.

    Our justice system isn’t perfect. But at least its priorities are to protect the rights of both crime victims and those accused of crime, justice, transparency and accountability. The justice system IS in the investigation business.

    And there is no for- or nonprofit corporate body that can say that same.

     

     

  • A symposium has never stopped sex abuse and cover-up

    What if Pablo Escobar had hosted a symposium on Drug Trade Gangland Violence Prevention?

    No matter what well-respected, hard-working experts he invited, the symposium wouldn’t have stopped the continued promulgation of violence in the Columbian Drug Cartel.

    Later this month, Penn State will be hosting a symposium on child sexual abuse and prevention. Their list of partners is very impressive.

    The Boy Scouts of America will also be hosting a symposium in November in Atlanta.

    Sounds similar, don’t you think?

    At least they are doing something, I hear many of you say. But that’s the problem: Right now, that ALL they are doing.

    The Boy Scouts and Penn State did not voluntarily go to the cops and say, “We have a problem.” The Scouts were sued by hundreds of victims who were aching after decades of abuse and cover-up. Penn State was exposed because of the bravery of Jerry Sandusky’s victims, who bucked the Happy Valley “code of silence” and came forward to protect other kids.

    But instead of enacting REAL institutional change that installs any measure of acountability, both groups are working to brand themselves as “leaders” in prevention. But don’t be fooled.

    Victims don’t come forward so that large organizations that cover up sex abuse will be encouraged to hold “symposiums” on child sex abuse prevention. They come forward so that wrong doers are punished and children are protected.

    Until the leadership of the Boy Scouts and Penn State are held publicly accountable and until effective institutional change is implemented and enforced, public relations events like symposiums will only give the false illusion of child safety.

    The only way that change will occur is if victims continue to use the civil and criminal courts to seek justice and if the public demands significant change with their voice and their checkbooks. Finally, the hard-working and tireless child protection advocacy groups and speakers attending both events should demand evidence of accountability and institutional change before any further partnership agreements with either the Scouts or Penn State.

    Addition:

    I want to be clear – I’m expressing doubts about institutions that sponsor these events, not those who attend or speak at them. The intentions of the institutions are questionable, not the intentions of people who show up or present at these events.

  • The Clay Feet of an Ethics Idol

    Business and moral ethics textbook writers need to find a new hero, and FAST. Joe Paterno just isn’t going to cut it anymore.

    I’m about halfway through a course in business ethics, which is a part of my track for an MBA. What I found absolutely startling is the fact that in more than half of the business ethics textbooks I have reviewed, Joe Paterno is used as an example of high ethical and moral standards, congruity between formal and informal organizational ethical communications systems (yeah, it’s jargon), and a model of how corporations should construct and define their own ethics and compliance programs.

    It looks like he had everyone suckered.

    Remember, this is not about legal requirements. This is ETHICS – our conduct in regards to the law AND in regards to those “grey areas.” Yes, Paterno may have fulfilled his basic legal requirements. But his moral and ethical obligations to the victims, the team and the community? Not so much.

    Because really, who cares if you have a “clean” football program if you allegedly convince the athletic director of your school to keep his mouth shut about the child molester prowling your locker rooms?

  • Ignore the Man Behind the Curtain: Joe Paterno and the Catholic Sex Abuse Crisis

    Joe Paterno’s death last weekend came as a bit of a shock and a huge disappointment. I knew he was sick, but my disappointment did not come from grief. My upset was quite different: The man at the center of the biggest child sex abuse scandal of 2011 is gone, and we will never know exactly what he knew and when he knew it.

    Some may say that I am overly critical to demand full truth and disclosure about the past of a man who is gone. As a culture, we are trained to “never speak ill of the dead.”  In fact, I have been told by more than a few people, “Paterno’s gone now. Can’t we focus on the good he did?” Some news outlets have even wondered if Paterno died of a broken heart.  (If anyone broke Paterno’s heart, it was Paterno. And I think that it was his ego, not his heart, that truly suffered. If he had a heart that could break, I think he would have done more to help the kids.)

    Paterno’s supporters want us to redeem a flawed hero. They want us to honor the outward good deeds while ignoring the destruction that his actions caused.

    And that reminded me of something ….

    In the ten years since the Catholic Clergy Sex Abuse Scandal broke, experts such as Tom Doyle have aptly discussed the phenomena of “Bella Figura” (literally beautiful figure or good image). The term describes the desire of the Catholic hierarchy to maintain outward appearances and the best possible presentation, despite the ugliness, crimes and cover-up going on behind the scenes. (Think if it as a global “ignore the man behind the curtain” philosophy.)

    In many ways, bella figura has worked well. Catholics still donate money; American presidents still pose for pictures with the Pope; and the US Catholic Church maintains tax-free status.  All the while, approximately 100,000 American children have been sexually molested by Catholic clergy and employees with the knowledge and complicity of church officials.

    Let’s remember, the sex abuse crisis in the Catholic church became a scandal for the same reason that the Penn State crisis became a scandal: the cover-up.

    Abuse happens everywhere. But it’s the calculated, decades-old cover-up that differentiates the Catholic Church and Penn State from other institutions or organizations that have employed abusers.

    But there may be rustling behind the curtain.

    Kansas City Slaughterhouse

    This leads us to Kansas City. For those of you who don’t know, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (for whom I volunteer and to whom I donate) has been under siege. Church lawyers in one case have deposed SNAP executive director David Clohessy and in another subpoenaed thousands of pages of correspondence between the group’s leaders and victims of abuse. Church lawyers also subpoenaed the group’s correspondence with journalists. You can read coverage here and here. There are a few editorials in support of SNAP here and here.

    The church is claiming that SNAP must turn over correspondence with victims who are not public because SNAP, its hotline, correspondence, and confidential support group meetings are not subject to the rape shield laws that protect the thousands of victims and witnesses who contact the group.  Why do church attorneys say SNAP is not protected by the law? Because SNAP doesn’t have an office. (With this interpretation of the law, therapists who work from home should be darned scared)

    It’s chilling. Especially since the bishop of Kansas City Robert is currently under criminal indictment for failure to report abuse.

    SNAP has nothing to do with either lawsuit, and in one of the cases, has had no contact at all with the victim. The move to draw SNAP into the courtroom is an overt and very public move on the part of the church to bankrupt the group through legal fees.

    Bye-Bye Bella Figura

    The church has shown its hand. By trying to eviscerate the largest organization that has helped survivors and the leading organization in exposing the cover-up, the bishops have made their point clear: they want victims to go away, survivors to shut up, the press to ignore the story and Catholics to go back to “pay, pray and obey.” Church leaders have taken their anti-survivor vitriol out of their lawyers’ offices and into the public sphere. Groups that normally would never interject themselves into the argument are now forced to voice their support of SNAP in order to protect the crime victims that they help.

    Such vicious anti-victim rhetoric is not very bella figura.

    The church has started down a very slippery slope.  By forcing SNAP to “out” victims in a case of which SNAP isn’t even a party, the church is threatening the privacy shield of rape crisis centers, hotlines, domestic abuse shelters, and thousands of other organizations dedicated to helping crime victims. Plus, they are scaring generations of victims into permanent silence.

    And it’s not much different in Happy Valley. By choosing to stick up for Joe Paterno’s legacy, Paterno’s supporters threaten children’s safety by making it okay to do the wrong thing. They also kick sand in the face of victims who were so tragically hurt by Jerry Sandusky.

    It’s time to stick up for victims. All victims.

     

     

  • Where are the congressional hearings about the Archdiocese of Philadelphia?

    The Penn State scandal has really upset me. Actually, it’s upset me far more than I would like to admit.

    I’ll begin with what upset me the most—besides the obvious horrific and stomach-turning sex abuse and cover-up, and the fact that the man who admitted to abusing me and another girl still has his job at Adrian College (Please note that the following are MY views, and not the views of SNAP or any of the other wonderful organizations of which I am a part):

    • In response to Penn State’s inaction and possible cover-up of the Sandusky matter, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D- Scranton) and Congressman Bobby Rush (D-Illinois) called for hearings in the Senate and the House regarding sex abuse and cover-up at the university. Other politicians may have also asked for hearings on both Penn State and the Citadel, but I stopped keeping track.

    Why does this upset me?

    Hundreds of children were possibly abused across the state, yet not one politician called for congressional hearings. Are the church’s victims less important than Penn State’s?

    What about the victims in:

    Where are the politicians? Why aren’t they calling for congressional hearings? I think that child sex abuse is a tad more important than steroid usage in professional baseball, and those hearings were endless.

    President Obama even weighed in on the Penn State scandal. He told ESPN that our “first priority is protecting our kids.” If that is the case, then why didn’t he say anything when he met with the Pope? Or Cardinal Francis George? Why hasn’t he met with victims? He met with flood victims, water boarding victims, and survivors of a hotel bombing in India. Yet, not once has a president or any other national politician publicly asked for a meeting with survivors of the Catholic clergy sex abuse scandal.

    I wonder why Missouri congressional leaders aren’t calling for a hearing about the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. If an organization in my district—an organization that cares for thousands of children and takes taxpayer dollars to fund services—was indicted for covering up child pornography and abuse just a few years after paying a huge financial settlement to victims and making a public promise to protect kids, I would be calling for national scrutiny. In fact, diocese lawyers are contending that child pornography may be covered under First Amendment protections. Yeah, really.

    For years, I have been hearing complaints from Catholic apologists who claim that the sex abuse scandal in the church is an over-blown creation of the media. I contend that it is the exact opposite: it is a catastrophe that is eating our children and destroying communities. Yet on the national stage, our politicians are simply too scared to do the right thing, confront the men in pointy hats, and protect the children in their districts. And I am really angry about it.

    Despite my anger and frustration, I do hope that there are congressional hearings about abuse and cover-up at Penn State and the Citadel. Those children deserve justice. They endured horrible pain, but because of their courage, they are heroes and have become voices for the silent. Perhaps they are paving the way for the clergy sex abuse victims. For that, I am grateful.