In yet another attempt to make litigation more accessible for victims of child sexual abuse and trafficking in Missouri, Rep. Brian Seitz and Sen. Brad Hudson have pre-filed legislation aiming to eliminate the civil statute of limitations in these cases.
In previous legislative sessions covered by BNG, bills have been approved by legislators (often unanimously and/or with bipartisan support) to lengthen the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse victims, aiming to give them more time to heal before going through the legal process of holding an abusive person or institution accountable for their crimes. However, despite enthusiastic support, these bills have not been fully passed before legislative sessions have ended.
Rep. Brian Seitz
Now, these legislators hope to eliminate the time restriction altogether.
These new bills were pre-filed on the heels of several legislative victories across the nation for child sexual abuse victims, including in Texas and in Missouri, where Seitz and Hudson successfully championed Trey’s Law last session.
Trey’s Law protects survivors’ voices across the state by prohibiting the misuse of nondisclosure agreements in civil child sexual abuse and trafficking cases. Advocates are hopeful this momentum will continue as legislators attempt to reform the civil statutes of limitations for child sexual abuse and trafficking victims in Missouri.
Following this victory, legislators hope to get additional bills through the legislature and signed into law.
Kathryn Robb
“It’s past time for Missouri to take action on this pressing issue,” said Kathryn Robb, national director of the Children’s Justice Campaign at ENOUGH ABUSE. “Sen. Hudson and Rep. Seitz have listened to the voices of survivors and taken a critical step toward protecting children and honoring their constitutional right to access Missouri’s civil courts.”
Currently, Missouri law only allows survivors of child sexual abuse to sue their perpetrators up to age 31, or within three years of discovering any injuries related to the abuse, and age 26 to file against any liable institutions.
Advocates for statute of limitations reform say this leaves many survivors without legal recourse once they’re ready to pursue justice. Research shows it takes an average of 20 years for survivors of child sexual abuse to first disclose their abuse, with many not disclosing until in their 50s and 60s, and a large number of survivors choosing never to disclose.
The joint resolutions filed on this issue would narrowly amend the Missouri Constitution to allow for retroactivity in civil child sexual abuse and trafficking cases, helping uplift the voices of adult survivors who are currently outside of the Missouri statute of limitations. Supplemental legislation would eliminate the civil statute of limitations for child sexual abuse victims prospectively.
Brad Hudson
The proposed Joint Resolutions which aim to enact retrospective laws include HJR130 (Seitz) and SJR 93 (Hudson). The supplemental legislation filed that would apply to future cases are HB 1664 (Seitz) and SB 1140 (Hudson).
This legislation is especially relevant for Missourians, as reports of child sexual abuse at Missouri institutions have made headlines in recent years.
This includes abuses that have occurred at Kanakuk Kamps in Southwest Missouri (located in both Rep. Seitz’s and Sen. Hudson’s districts), International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Boy Scouts of America (now Scouting America), and various “troubled teen” and youth residential programs. Survivors from each of these institutions, who were barred from filing civil litigation due to civil statutes of limitation, have testified at hearings during prior sessions advocating for its reform so they may have their day in court and expose bad actors.
Many of them also testified in support of Trey’s Law as it was being pushed through state legislatures.
“Kanakuk abuse survivors are grateful to both Rep. Seitz and Sen. Hudson for being the first to take action upon hearing victims’ stories of trauma, since Kanakuk Ministries is headquartered in the areas they represent,” said Elizabeth Phillips, the founder of Trey’s Law, who has testified in support of SOL reform now for four sessions.
Her brother Trey Carlock was the namesake of Trey’s Law.
Trey was abused by Kanakuk staffer Pete Newman, then forced by civil statute of limitations to file his case before he was ready (age of 23 in Texas and age of 26 in Missouri). His case was settled but included a restrictive NDA, which his family claims impeded his ability to heal. He died by suicide in 2019.
“This is a matter of life and death. The momentum on this public safety issue has been building for years, thanks to the tireless efforts of advocates, survivors, and their families. It’s time for Missouri to stand firmly with victims, not perpetrators and the institutions that harbor them,” Phillips said.
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Trey’s Law passes in Missouri Senate, moves forward in Texas
‘Trey’s Law’ makes its way through Missouri and Texas legislatures
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