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Child Molestation Attorney: Were You a Victim of Child Sexual Abuse?

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Looking For a Child Molestation Attorney Near You? National Team of Experienced Lawyers

Child sex abuse has been shockingly prevalent in the US for decades. With your help, we can put a stop to it. You are here because:

A loved one or you, are or have been sexually assaulted or abused
You want to know what your legal options are
You want those who enabled the abuse to occur to be held accountable

Our experienced child sex abuse lawyers are here to help. We know this area of the law - and we understand what you're going through. You can trust our legal team to get the answers you deserve and fight for justice.

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Looking For a Child Molestation Attorney Near You? National Team of Experienced Lawyers

Child sex abuse has been shockingly prevalent in the US for decades. With your help, we can put a stop to it. You are here because:

A loved one or you, are or have been sexually assaulted or abused
You want to know what your legal options are
You want those who enabled the abuse to occur to be held accountable

Abuse Guardians is an alliance of over 20 sexual abuse lawyers nationwide dedicated to helping survivors get justice

Seeking Justice For Children Victimized By Sexual Abuse

Was your child victimized by a dangerous sexual predator? We understand the deep hurt, shock and horror that you must be feeling right now. Our attorneys are here to support you. Your family may have powerful legal options, both to pursue a case against the offender and to hold other responsible parties accountable. We know it can feel overwhelming and infuriating to consider confronting your child's abuser. If you choose to do so, if you choose to fight for justice, we are here for you.

How Does Child Sex Abuse Happen?

Sexual molestation, assault, and rape of children are widely considered among the vilest crimes, and you’d think that our federal and state governments would do everything in their power to reduce the incidence of such a horrific threat to children. Yet all over the news, we see case after case of sex abuse of minors. Where is sexual child abuse most likely to occur, and what makes it difficult to prevent and stop?

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Lack Of Reporting of Child Sex Abuse

About 66% of sexual assaults go unreported. It is the victim’s decision to report, and theirs alone. There are many reasons a victim may choose not to report an assault.

A victim may believe:

the police won’t be able to help
that he or she will suffer retaliation from their attacker or someone else
that the problem is too personal

A survivor may want to avoid:

getting their attacker in trouble
being judged
reliving the pain of the assault by having to recount it in great detail

Ultimately, victims must remember that there is no reason to be ashamed, and they did nothing wrong. If you are concerned about your name being associated with the report, you can choose to remain anonymous.

Child Molestation Lawyers: Predators Seek Positions Of Power

It’s obvious that predatory pedophiles on the lookout for victims would seek to spend time and work in places where they can interact with children. But positions that child molesters have been commonly known to take advantage of in order to target and victimize children and teens are those that offer power and authority over children and over communities. Using this authority and maintaining a facade of decorum, predators can, for example:

Gain automatic trust from children and their families
Evoke feelings of awe and admiration from victims
Arrange one-on-one time with children without arousing suspicion
Intimidate victims into silence
Rely on support from the community if allegations arise

Sadly, when abused children try to tell others about what happened to them, their confessions are often not believed, especially when the perpetrator is a prominent figure in a community, such as a beloved teacher or a religious leader.

Who Can Be Held Accountable In a Child Molestation Lawsuit? Places Where Child Sex Abuse Is Common

According to sex abuse statistics, as well as from the rise of recent lawsuits, there are many public arenas where child molestation and other sexual misconduct involving minors is likely to arise.

Religious Community Child Molestation

One of the most highly-publicized scandals involving sex abuse in religious organizations is the long-standing issue of abusive priests in the Catholic church.

Yet children of all faiths are at risk for sexual abuse, particularly those in religious communities that tend to be secretive or relatively isolated from the rest of society, because such communities may attempt to handle abuse complaints internally and avoid reporting them to authorities or sharing them with the public.

Child Sex Abuse In Schools

Though schools should be a safe place for children to focus on educational pursuits, studies show that child sex abuse is shockingly common, with as many as 10% of all children experiencing some form of sexual abuse during their time in school. And it’s not just public K-12 schools that suffer from this “epidemic” of sex abuse. Children and teens can be at considerable risk for facing sexual violence and molestation while attending:

Private / boarding schools
Schools for religious instruction
Colleges and universities
Preschools and daycare facilities

You can also read more about sex abuse risks inherent to each different type of school on our Sexual Abuse In Schools page.

Child Sex Assault at After-School Clubs And Activities

Many parents enroll their children in a number of after-school programs, where kids can have fun, make friends, learn and develop new skills, and engage in a variety of healthy physical activities. But such programs also may harbor predators looking to take advantage of children when their parents aren’t around.

For example, a number of recent lawsuits have been filed by former Boy Scouts who say they were repeatedly abused by Scout leaders and other adult volunteers.

Sporting programs, such as Little League baseball, which play an important role in the lives of many kids, especially student athletes with aspirations for a career in professional sports, have also been hit by sex abuse lawsuits. Many of these claims describe coach abuse, where coaches who spend inordinate amounts of time practicing alone with students are found to have sexually abused one or more children.

Child Sexual Abuse On The Internet

Even when children seem to be safe at home, they may be targeted by predators online. Many children and teens now spend a significant time each day on the internet, whether on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, and maintain some sort of online presence through social media or other means.

Tragically, children who are simply looking for companionship online find themselves being manipulated into engaging in sexual text or video chat, or exploited / blackmailed by child pornographers into sending graphic images or videos. Some kids are even lured into meeting up with dangerous predators. While uncommon, recent cases have emerged in which children and teens were forced into sex trafficking by contacts they met online.

Signs Of Sexual Abuse In Children

The most effective way to help prevent your children from suffering sexual abuse is to be as involved as possible in their everyday lives and ensure that they feel comfortable and safe confiding in you.

Among the leading reasons sex abuse survivors give for keeping abuse a secret are fears that even loved ones and friends will dismiss their experiences as made-up or exaggerated, consider the confession “unimportant,” or blame / judge them for what happened. This is why it’s absolutely crucial to let your children know that you’ll always believe what they say and take what they tell you to heart, and that you will do all you can to support them.

Disclosure Is Rare

Keep in mind that it’s not common for victims to fully recount their painful experiences in a single conversation; it may take a considerable amount of time for them to be able to share their entire story.

Experts note that it’s common for children to drop hints that something has happened to them, to test their loved ones’ reactions and level of receptivity. Then, if they’re encouraged by the reactions to their hints, they may gradually share more of what happened. Also, children are often initially more comfortable confiding in an older sibling or friend than in their parents or other older family members.

Changes In Behavior & Physical Indicators

However, even if you’ve long had a close, trusting relationship with your children, they may still feel too frightened, ashamed, or uncomfortable to tell you directly if they’re experiencing abuse. After all, it’s a common tactic for predators to threaten, manipulate, guilt-trip, or brainwash their victims so that they’ll be less likely to expose the abuse by telling loved ones. Pay close attention if you notice your child exhibiting unusual behavior or unexplained physical symptoms, such as:

Mood swings
Depression
Keeping secrets
Sudden changes in eating habits
Nightmares or other sleep issues
Ripped or bloody undergarments
Pain during urination or bowel movements
Preoccupation or unusual knowledge of sexual matters
Reverting to behaviors characteristic of a younger child (i.e. sucking their thumbs, babbling)

Another telltale sign of possible child sex abuse is when your child is suddenly receiving a lot of money or luxury items from unexplained sources, as predators are known to “groom” children for abuse by plying them with lavish amounts of affection, gifts, and favors in order to win their friendship and esteem before abusing them. You can see a more in-depth list of sexual abuse warning signs in tip sheets from prominent advocacy organization Stop It Now!

Child Molestation Lawyers: Sex Abuse Survivors Turn To The Civil System

Criminal and civil cases can be raised over the same incident(s) of abuse, molestation, or rape, though each type of case is conducted quite differently, as detailed in this guide by FindLaw. One key difference is that criminal justice in the current U.S. legal system generally offers far less support to victims than civil litigation. Let’s take a closer look

Cases Led By Criminal Prosecutors

Instead of being filed by the victims of abuse, criminal sex abuse cases are brought against alleged perpetrators by the federal or state government, led by a district attorney, State’s attorney, or other type of public lawyer.

Unlike in civil cases, victims have very little control over the case’s direction, and criminal prosecutors tend to focus on proving the perpetrator’s guilt while overlooking the considerable trauma that the abuse survivors suffered. They often lack sensitivity in the way they work with sex abuse victims, submitting them to invasive questioning and pushing them to testify in court, processes that force victims to repeatedly relive their trauma.

Compensation Scarce Or Non-Existent

Another crucial matter that criminal prosecutors typically don’t consider is the matter of much-needed monetary compensation for victims to help them heal and recover from the abuse they endured. Abuse survivors should be compensated for considerable expenses they face as a result of suffering through tremendous hardship, which may include lost wages, medical bills, and the cost of ongoing therapy sessions.

Yet the pressing matter of relief for victims is rarely brought up during criminal trials, if at all. It’s all-too-common for victims to have to specifically ask for damages, in the form of court-ordered restitution. But restitution isn't always granted, much less in appropriate amounts.

When criminal courts do decide to award compensation to crime victims, they tend to dole it out sparingly, asking for every expense to be itemized. It’s hard to put a price on the significant pain suffering, emotional trauma, and other forms of harm endured by victims and their families as a result of sexual abuse.

Child Sexual Abuse Compensation Through A Private Claim

On the other hand, civil attorneys tend to be experienced in treating clients with compassion and consideration. Knowing that victims will often require years of expensive therapy to help them cope with their trauma and start the path to healing, civil lawyers do their best to fight for the large amount of compensation that would best help clients afford the support they need.

Contribute To The Movement

The problem is that perpetrators of sexual violence are not being effectively punished in America. The good news is that incidents of sexual assault have fallen by 50% since 1993. The horrible truth is that out of every 994 out of 1,000 rape perpetrators will not see jail time for their offenses. Part of this is because only 334 of those 1,000 rapes are reported. The other part of this problem lies in the conviction process. Only 63 of those 334 reports lead to arrest, and of those 63 reports, only 7 will result in a felony conviction. By the time it comes to sentencing, only 6 out of the 334 reported rapists will see jail time. This is unacceptable and we are working to fix this problem.

By reporting what happened, survivors can contribute to positive change in sexual assault legislation. Survivors who report assault assert that their pain is legitimate, that it was unwarranted, and that it is unacceptable. The more survivors who report their sexual assault experiences, the more voices who demand justice. Demanding justice can and does lead to system-wide change. We must band together and advocate for what’s right, and make sure justice is served.

If you have been affected by a sexual assault, we are here to help. Please reach out to one of our dedicated attorneys to discuss your legal options.