San Diego Sex Abuse Attorneys Handling Claims against Religious Organizations

San Diego religious leaders who ignore their duty cause catastrophic injuries

Anyone from a place of worship who is in a position of authority, or who acts as an agent of that institution, is automatically viewed as trustworthy and above reproach by his or her congregants. Your children are taught early on to look up to positive religious influences in his or her life from priests, rabbis, and imams to Sunday school teachers and youth group advisors. Coupled with being taught to respect adults in positions of authority, children are programmed to believe that people in these positions would never harm them so they may be confused when sexual abuse or assault occurs at the hands of one of these figures.

Children are legally unable to consent to being touched in a sexual manner by anyone, and any act involving groping, fondling, pornography or other sexually suggestive activities is explicitly unwanted and illegal.

When this behavior is pushed onto children in a religious setting, or perpetrated by someone affiliated with their place of worship, it can be excruciatingly difficult for a child to explain what happened to a trusted adult. It can be even more difficult for an adult survivor to disclose their abuse years later out of fear that delayed reporting won’t be believed. Our attorneys understand that everyone has to come to terms with his or her abuse in his or her own time. If that time is now, we are here to help you through it to bring your abuser to justice.

Sexual predators use the cover of religious institutions as hunting grounds

As reported by the organization Darkness To Light, about 60% of children who have endured sexual abuse do so at the hands of a person highly trusted by their family. Who is more trusted than someone you literally put your faith in? You feel safe under the cover of the place you attend to pray, and so do the abusers who take advantage of your child’s innocence. For years they have seen incidents and accusations swept under the rug without reprisals or any true form of punishment – all sending the message that they will be protected when they ruin children’s lives.

If a child or an adult survivor you care about has experienced a sexual assault connected with attending a house of worship, our attorneys want to provide you with the legal support you will need to right the wrong. We know the right questions to ask to reveal the behaviors that point to sexual abuse or assault.

Grooming

Religious figures, such as ministers, rabbis or priests, singling out a particular child to pay special attention to may make that child feel more comfortable with that adult, and feelings of safety are built in simply by his or her position of leadership. A child might be given special privileges that other children don’t receive, or the child may be given preferential treatment designed to endear him or her to an authority figure. At first glance, this may seem like the innocent behavior of a religious leader who sees exceptional qualities in your child that he or she wants to cultivate, when in actuality, this is “grooming” behavior.

Grooming helps provide an abuser with opportunities to assault a child without drawing attention to the fact that something improper is going on. The relationship may even outwardly appear parental in nature to anyone watching, but once the abuser has gained the trust of the victim’s family, and the victim, abuse is soon to follow.

Shaming

Shaming their victims is one way sexual abusers attempt to ensure the child remains secretive, which only allows the abuse to be prolonged, causing deeper psychological trauma. Religious leaders have the advantage of using their setting and the child’s faith against him or her to incite feelings of guilt. Abusers within the church or other religious institutions may also threaten their victims with punishments such as excommunication or tarnishing the family’s reputation, or even reinforcing the fear that no one will believe them.

If you have been made to feel ashamed of acts inflicted upon you as a child, you need to understand that you are not at fault. Your abuser is to blame, and we are here to help you stand up for yourself to shed light on his or her criminal actions.