If you’ve experienced childhood sexual abuse, you may face difficult, lasting complications for the rest of your life. Of course, millions of victims go on to lead wonderful, fulfilling lives. Fulfillment and joy can be found through therapy, support groups, medication, loved ones, new hobbies, or any combination of those For some, filing a sex abuse lawsuit against the individual or organization that abused them is a priority in their healing journey.
Many people don’t choose to go this route because it takes effort to hire a sexual abuse lawyer and possibly go to court. That being said, it’s absolutely worth it for numerous reasons. If you’re on the fence deciding whether or not to file a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit, below are some reasons to move forward with it. Please note that we can keep your name confidential and we can protect your identity.
Put the Perpetrator in Jail
If someone abuses children, they do not deserve to live a normal life amongst innocent citizens. They’ve inflicted terrible, inexcusable harm on a child, and if they are never caught or reported, they continue on enjoying the same freedoms as everyone else.
Perpetrators of sexual abuse should face the consequences of their horrific crime and be locked away. Prison is meant for those who have broken the law and/or inflicted pain on others, and that is exactly what a child abuser has done. It’s especially important to put abusers in jail because if they do not face any consequences, they may continue committing these crimes.
Protect Future Victims
If your abuser is still a free citizen, there’s a chance they will continue to victimize others in the same way. If an abuser remains in the same clergy, innocent members of the congregation will continue to attend that place of worship without any idea that a clergy member has sexually abused children. This puts them at extreme risk of being victimized again, which perpetuates pain and suffering in the lives of so many innocent children.
By filing a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit, you are making it known that that this person has abused you and potentially others. The organization may fire this person when the allegations come out, protecting the people of that congregation. As the sexual abuse lawsuit continues, if there is enough proof of abuse, the perpetrator may even be locked away. If that’s the case, even more children will be protected in the long run. By filing a clergy abuse lawsuit, you have the power to prevent this heinous crime from happening to other innocent victims.
Serve as a Role Model
If you choose to file a sexual abuse lawsuit, other victims who have kept silent will feel empowered by your decision. It can be terrifying for some to even think of moving forward in that process. It’s a gray area for many, a great unknown challenge that might seem too daunting to even take on.
Meanwhile, you can be seen as the brave individual who went forward in getting justice. As a role model, other victims who have yet to come forward may follow suit. You never know who else has been victimized by the person who you’re reporting, and there is strength in numbers.
Hold the Organization Accountable
Unfortunately, many religious organizations either turned a blind eye to clergy abuse, or even actively covered it up. Instead of holding the abuser accountable, they tried to pretend as though nothing sinister was going on. Sometimes, even reporting the abuser to higher-ups won’t result in action. Many organizations have a vested interest in keeping things quiet.
This may not make sense, because why would someone want to defend a pedophile? The website Insurance Journal puts it simply: “misconduct is often covered up in hopes of saving the institution’s reputation, and the money that accompanies it.”
But by filing a sexual abuse lawsuit, the organization that was enabling an abuser will finally be held accountable. A lawsuit is a serious occurrence, and it’s not something that can be ignored. Someone will have to face lawyers and explain the facts.
Obtain a Financial Settlement
Many people who have been sexually abused as children experience life-long repercussions, and this may be true for you. Lifelong impacts include PTSD, depression, eating disorders, substance abuse, and more. Challenges like this can alter one’s ability to function normally in the world. Some are unable to complete an education or hold a career, and some have spent countless dollars on therapy programs to get through the trauma.
By filing a clergy abuse lawsuit, you may be able to reach a settlement that will help you get your life back on track. While no amount of money can completely ease the pain that a victim has experienced, it can help remove one stressor from their lives and assist with getting any therapy or care they need moving forward.
These are all huge, impactful reasons why you should seriously consider moving forward with a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit. Mitchell Garabedian, an attorney in Boston who has successfully represented numerous victims of clergy sex abuse, said this about the importance of coming forward with sexual abuse lawsuits:
“By coming forward, these courageous clergy sexual-abuse victims have empowered themselves, other victims and made the world a safer place for children. History has taught us that pedophile priests sexually abuse as many children as possible until pedophile priests are stopped because of incarceration or infirmity. It is up to the public to take affirmative action to protect their children when they are in the presence of priests.” (Source)
This perfectly sums up all the reasons above as to why it’s so valuable to begin the process of a clergy abuse lawsuit. Your actions can put the perpetrator in jail, protect future victims, hold the organization accountable, and help you get a settlement to help with the pain and suffering you’ve endured.
We hope any victims of clergy sexual abuse reading this will consider begin the process of a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit. We can get you the most effective representation and ensure that this, at times, difficult process goes as smoothly as possible.
If you or a family member has been sexually abused by a person of authority, whether it is a clergy member from any denomination, youth sports organization, private or public school, daycare, medical professional, University, or any organization supervising children, you can submit your Private and Free claim by visiting https://www.stopsexpredators.com. We are highly experienced and compassionate when dealing with Sex abuse cases and we can keep your identity private throughout the process of holding the abusers and those who helped cover up the abuse accountable. We can help you recover costs for medical and counseling expenses, loss of income due to extended recovery times, loss of companionship with family members, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
