WEBVTT - Ohioans For Child Protection

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<v Speaker 1>To you. I am pleased. Welcome to the 55 KRC

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<v Speaker 1>Morning Show. Someone who is absolutely fighting for those who

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<v Speaker 1>have been, well, molested by perverts as children. It's the

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<v Speaker 1>Ohioans for Child Protection. It's an advocacy organization formed by

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<v Speaker 1>parents and grandparents and other concerned folks dedicated to securing

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<v Speaker 1>stronger legal protections and justice for survivors of childhood sexual

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<v Speaker 1>abuse in Ohio. And this group has also really scored

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<v Speaker 1>a wonderful victory in the form of the House Bill

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<v Speaker 1>322 last year, criminalizing patterns of inappropriate behavior. That's that

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<v Speaker 1>grooming bill that was passed. Welcome, Rebecca Serendorf. It is

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<v Speaker 1>certainly a pleasure to have you here on the 55KRC

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<v Speaker 1>Morning Show, and thanks for what you're doing.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you for having me back on.

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<v Speaker 3>It's great when we have folks in our community that

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<v Speaker 3>really care about the safety of children and keep following

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<v Speaker 3>this story.

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<v Speaker 1>Absolutely. And you know, one of the disturbing things, and

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<v Speaker 1>we can talk about the, is it Jeff or Joff

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<v Speaker 1>drew this confessed rapist, former Catholic priest, uh, and his

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<v Speaker 1>antics are as disgusting as they are. It kind of

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<v Speaker 1>led to the discussion about the Ohio statute of limitations,

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<v Speaker 1>which currently requires. So if, if some person was molested

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<v Speaker 1>as a young person, there's a period of time that

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<v Speaker 1>requires them to file a civil lawsuit within 30 years

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<v Speaker 1>or more. criminal charges, which must be brought by the

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<v Speaker 1>prosecutors by age 43. Rebecca, can you explain where 30

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<v Speaker 1>and 43 came along? Because 43 sounds particularly arbitrary. So

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<v Speaker 1>how do we get to that random number? Because that

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<v Speaker 1>43 cutoff period directly affected one of the victims of

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<v Speaker 1>this confessed rapist here in the area.

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, it did.

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<v Speaker 3>And I think when 20 years ago, about the last

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<v Speaker 3>time Ohio took a look at its statute of limitations,

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<v Speaker 3>We looked pretty much the same as the rest of

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<v Speaker 3>the country when it came time to these arbitrary deadlines.

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<v Speaker 3>And a lot of that was because our society kind

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<v Speaker 3>of had some myths in our mind about how child

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<v Speaker 3>sex abuse works. I think a lot of people were

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<v Speaker 3>kind of raised on that concept of stranger danger. And

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<v Speaker 3>we tell our kids not to talk to strangers. And

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<v Speaker 3>that typical don't get in someone's car thing, certainly we

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<v Speaker 3>should still do. But actually, most children are abused by

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<v Speaker 3>someone that they know and that the family generally trust.

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<v Speaker 3>And we also tend to believe that children are going

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<v Speaker 3>to run home and tell a parent. And that's just

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<v Speaker 3>simply not how this works. There's a tremendous amount of

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<v Speaker 3>trauma after that kind of assault. And many times offenders

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<v Speaker 3>are threatening and manipulating a child before the abuse, during

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<v Speaker 3>the abuse, after, so they can actually stop the child

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<v Speaker 3>from disclosing.

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<v Speaker 2>And so the average.

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<v Speaker 3>Age to disclose is age 52. And as other states

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<v Speaker 3>have been actually looking on the research regarding trauma, they

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<v Speaker 3>decided to eliminate the statute of limitations criminally because the

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<v Speaker 3>average age fixated offender is basically racks up around 150

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<v Speaker 3>victims in their lifetime. And so you can't from a

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<v Speaker 3>public safety issue, just leave people out there that are

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<v Speaker 3>going to keep on offending against children just because we've

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<v Speaker 3>set some arbitrary deadlines.

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<v Speaker 2>We also have electronic evidence and.

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<v Speaker 3>So many more things now that we understand this isn't

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<v Speaker 3>a case of, Oh, there's no evidence now.

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<v Speaker 1>Right. That has been the longstanding reason for statute of limitations,

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<v Speaker 1>because witnesses' recollections fade over time. They might be incorrectly

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<v Speaker 1>remembering something or thinking something actually happened that didn't. I

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<v Speaker 1>understand that. But then there's also the death of people

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<v Speaker 1>who have factual information relating to whatever was alleged here. So, yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>that makes sense. But you're right, evidentially speaking. But the

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<v Speaker 1>other component of that, Rebecca, and my point has always been, whoa, whoa, whoa,

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<v Speaker 1>it's a criminal prosecution. You've got to prove guilt beyond

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<v Speaker 1>a reasonable doubt. That's a tough standard in any case,

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<v Speaker 1>even if everybody's alive well and the recollections are within

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<v Speaker 1>a short period of time. So defense attorneys will still

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<v Speaker 1>be able to argue that and probably successfully in some cases.

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<v Speaker 3>I know RAINN estimates that we're only convicting around 2%

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<v Speaker 3>of offenders in sexual violence cases anyway. So we have

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<v Speaker 3>incredibly low conviction rates. Instead, if we were to take

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<v Speaker 3>a look at the Jeff Drew case, as it kind

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<v Speaker 3>of encapsulates a lot of problems, right? We have two

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<v Speaker 3>men come forward saying that they were abused in the

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<v Speaker 3>same period of time, in the same school building, in

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<v Speaker 3>a similar manner. One man is younger than 43 in

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<v Speaker 3>the moment, and he gets to bring the criminal charges.

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<v Speaker 3>The other man is just past being 43 years old,

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<v Speaker 3>and therefore he can't. There's the guilty plea that Jeff drew,

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<v Speaker 3>gets seven years for nine counts of child rape, and

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<v Speaker 3>now he's out in our community. what would the sentencing

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<v Speaker 3>look like? What would that negotiation have looked like instead

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<v Speaker 3>if it was two men able to bring the criminal

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<v Speaker 3>charges based off the evidence that they had? And so

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<v Speaker 3>you can see this play out as a public safety

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<v Speaker 3>issue in our community because we arbitrarily opened up court

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<v Speaker 3>doors for one man and shut them up for another.

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<v Speaker 2>And now 44 states have eliminated this.

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<v Speaker 3>And what we inadvertently have done here in Ohio is

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<v Speaker 3>we've created a legal sanctuary child rapist because they know

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<v Speaker 3>we're one of the handful of states in the country

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<v Speaker 3>that they're going to have a clock that they can

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<v Speaker 3>run out.

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<v Speaker 2>And they do know about delayed disclosure, right? Yes.

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<v Speaker 3>Boy, do they know about their victims.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, they do. And because many of them have threatened

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<v Speaker 1>their victims with grievous bodily harm to the victim themselves

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<v Speaker 1>or the family members or maybe the pet dog, or

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<v Speaker 1>you can see how bad this can get. And real

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<v Speaker 1>quick here, we'll bring you back, Rebecca Serndorf, to talk

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<v Speaker 1>a little more about the Ohio Child Protection folks and

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<v Speaker 1>what you guys are doing to change the law in

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<v Speaker 1>the state of Ohio. But is it also true that

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<v Speaker 1>quite often the victim themselves feels guilty or responsible for this,

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<v Speaker 1>and therefore they're embarrassed or fearful that saying something might, well,

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<v Speaker 1>expose them to some sort of condemnation?

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, most certainly.

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<v Speaker 3>I think predators do an excellent job of trying to

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<v Speaker 3>make their victim feel complicit. Yeah. or twist in their

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<v Speaker 3>minds that just because they froze, which is a very

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<v Speaker 3>normal trauma response.

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<v Speaker 2>For people, is to freeze.

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<v Speaker 3>And they try to manipulate that as if the compliance

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<v Speaker 3>and the assault was somehow complicity.

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<v Speaker 2>And it just simply isn't.

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<v Speaker 3>A child is always the victim when they're being assaulted.

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<v Speaker 2>By an adult.

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<v Speaker 1>Always. Rebecca Sorendorf, Ohio's for Child Protection. We'll bring her

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<v Speaker 1>back and talk more about this important, hopefully changing law.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't go away. It's 847-55-KRC-D Talk Station. 55 KRC. 55 KRC,

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<v Speaker 1>the talk station. Brian Thomas with Rebecca Surindorf. She's with

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<v Speaker 1>Ohioans for Child Protection. Got some victory last year with

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<v Speaker 1>the grooming bill and trying to get the statute of

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<v Speaker 1>limitations changed. It looks like Bill Blessing, Senator Blessing, is

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<v Speaker 1>on your side. And he realizes because taking the statute

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<v Speaker 1>of limitations away would allow prosecutors to go after these

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<v Speaker 1>rapists like the priest, a confessed rapist, Jeff Drew. But also...

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<v Speaker 1>And Bill Blessing's identified as Catholic in the reporting, and

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<v Speaker 1>I'm going to give Paula Christian over at WCPO credit

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<v Speaker 1>for the reporting, but he recognizes that maybe the institutions

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<v Speaker 1>themselves need to be held accountable, and that's what he's saying.

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<v Speaker 1>You've got to be able to hold the institutions accountable,

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<v Speaker 1>which would include the Catholic Church. Yes, he admits it

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<v Speaker 1>would open the floodgates, no question, but that's okay. Because

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<v Speaker 1>I think part of the problem here is a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of my listeners have chimed in on this, including me.

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<v Speaker 1>I remember when I was in high school, there were

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<v Speaker 1>two teachers that were engaged in relations with students. And

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<v Speaker 1>everybody knew about it, Rebecca, but no one said anything

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<v Speaker 1>or did anything. And then listener after listener called in

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<v Speaker 1>with similar tales, like, yeah, they all knew about it.

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<v Speaker 1>Nobody said anything. Part of the big problem is here.

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<v Speaker 1>People aren't opening their mouths, but you dealt with that.

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<v Speaker 1>I believe in the grooming bill, the house bill three 22,

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<v Speaker 1>which penalizes folks who are obligated to report abuse goes

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<v Speaker 1>after them. So there's some accountability. Like for example, if

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<v Speaker 1>a teacher is aware of it, they now could possibly

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<v Speaker 1>be held accountable under house bill three 22. Is that correct?

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<v Speaker 2>Rebecca?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, House Bill 322 extended the statute of limitations also

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<v Speaker 3>on mandated reporting, because I think so often when there's

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<v Speaker 3>a failure of mandated reporting, by the time you realize

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<v Speaker 3>that you can actually take that to a prosecutor, generally

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<v Speaker 3>the statute of limitations pass. So we saw that go

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<v Speaker 3>from a two-year statute of limitation to a four-year one,

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<v Speaker 3>in part because there were parents reporting concerning behavior regarding

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<v Speaker 3>Jeff drew in the fall of 2018, um, that we

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<v Speaker 3>were not aware of until we were passed the SOL

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<v Speaker 3>in 2020. And it just kind of brought to mind

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<v Speaker 3>that this was yet another system failure that people that

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<v Speaker 3>were mandated reporters, um, actually were not reporting that. And

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<v Speaker 3>they may have had knowledge that Jeff drew in that

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<v Speaker 3>same time period was under his third criminal investigation in

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<v Speaker 3>Butler county.

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<v Speaker 1>All right. So now has there been an actual bill

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<v Speaker 1>introduced with regard to the seemingly arbitrary 30 and 43

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<v Speaker 1>year old statute of limitations cutoffs?

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<v Speaker 3>Senator Blessing has actually submitted for a bill to be drafted,

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<v Speaker 3>and he believes that we'll see a bill number here

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<v Speaker 3>shortly this fall before the state house goes back for

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<v Speaker 3>lame duck. But we can already start talking to our

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<v Speaker 3>state house leaders right now about what we want to

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<v Speaker 3>see in Ohio law.

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<v Speaker 2>So you can email your own House.

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<v Speaker 3>Rep at OhioHouse.gov or OhioSenate.gov. But also it's great to

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<v Speaker 3>reach out to Senate President McCauley and also House Speaker

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<v Speaker 3>Huffman because they're the leadership here in the state and

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<v Speaker 3>they get to set the agenda. And if we're letting

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<v Speaker 3>them know what an important public safety issue this is

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<v Speaker 3>for us, they can prioritize it and make sure that

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<v Speaker 3>Ohio just gets in line with the rest of the

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<v Speaker 3>country and closes up this loophole for child offenders.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, the numbers are definitely, again, us since we're only

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<v Speaker 1>one of six states now in the entire union that

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<v Speaker 1>has these in place. But what is standing in the

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<v Speaker 1>way of Rebecca Sorondor from Ohioans for Child Protection? Because

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<v Speaker 1>I have it, because I'm reading it, at least attributed

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<v Speaker 1>to the insurance industry and the Catholic Church who stood

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<v Speaker 1>in the way of these efforts over the past 20 years,

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<v Speaker 1>because you were quoted as saying, hey, For the last

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<v Speaker 1>20 years, nearly every General Assembly, somebody has presented a

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<v Speaker 1>statute of limitations bill, but they've all gotten shot down

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<v Speaker 1>or didn't advance. Is it really the Catholic Church and

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<v Speaker 1>the insurance industry that have that much power?

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<v Speaker 3>Well, I think that in other states, if you take

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<v Speaker 3>a look at who has been lobbying against these bills

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<v Speaker 3>and who challenges them in court, that's generally what you see.

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<v Speaker 3>And we probably have similar dynamics.

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<v Speaker 2>Here, but... Also, so what, right?

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<v Speaker 3>The Catholic church exists in every state, yet 44 of

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<v Speaker 3>them managed to get this bill passed.

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<v Speaker 2>So we can most certainly do it.

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<v Speaker 3>But I do think the civil piece, which is what

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<v Speaker 3>opens up those court doors, which is a different standard

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<v Speaker 3>as well.

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<v Speaker 2>And in Ohio, if.

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<v Speaker 3>We can open up our civil court, we are the

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<v Speaker 3>only state in the country that has a civil registry.

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<v Speaker 3>So this is this incredible opportunity actually that we can

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<v Speaker 3>have a list with the attorney general that if someone

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<v Speaker 3>was found in civil court to have sexually abused a child,

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<v Speaker 3>we can actually now record their name on a civil

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<v Speaker 3>registry and our youth serving organizations can start using that

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<v Speaker 3>as a resource to have a better gate on their

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<v Speaker 3>doors that they know that they're actually letting in adults

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<v Speaker 3>that are suitable to work with children.

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<v Speaker 1>That sounds logical and reasonable. Rebecca Serendorf, The message to

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<v Speaker 1>my listeners, I guess, is get in touch with the

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<v Speaker 1>elected officials and have them, well, advance legislation to get

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<v Speaker 1>rid of the statute of limitations. Is it simple as that?

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<v Speaker 2>It really is. And this is most certainly a bipartisan issue.

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<v Speaker 3>Teresa, my co-founder, the two of us have been visiting

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<v Speaker 3>like block watches and Republican clubs and Democratic clubs in

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<v Speaker 3>our county and everywhere we go. We meet people that

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<v Speaker 3>are just horrified that Ohio's law is so dated. And

0:12:10.910 --> 0:12:13.449
<v Speaker 3>we talk to folks afterwards that then tell us that

0:12:13.470 --> 0:12:15.500
<v Speaker 3>they were abused or someone really close.

0:12:15.290 --> 0:12:18.459
<v Speaker 2>To them was. And it's just really a shame.

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<v Speaker 3>That we kind of let this, you know, public safety

0:12:21.200 --> 0:12:24.300
<v Speaker 3>problem that affects one in four girls and probably around

0:12:24.400 --> 0:12:28.420
<v Speaker 3>one in 10 boys to continue on just because it

0:12:28.480 --> 0:12:29.640
<v Speaker 3>isn't being made a priority.

0:12:30.010 --> 0:12:31.790
<v Speaker 1>This is being made a priority, and apparently enough people

0:12:31.830 --> 0:12:34.630
<v Speaker 1>aren't stepping up and calling out these folks when they

0:12:34.670 --> 0:12:37.650
<v Speaker 1>have indications or evidence that these children are being molested.

0:12:37.670 --> 0:12:40.730
<v Speaker 1>You cannot say something early enough. And, of course, when

0:12:40.750 --> 0:12:43.190
<v Speaker 1>you look at what happened with Jeff Drew and his victims,

0:12:43.250 --> 0:12:44.950
<v Speaker 1>I mean, this went over a period of years.

0:12:46.450 --> 0:12:50.329
<v Speaker 3>Yes, three decades, three counties in Ohio, there were reported

0:12:50.370 --> 0:12:53.790
<v Speaker 3>behaviors with him. And I think another lesson in this

0:12:53.910 --> 0:12:57.160
<v Speaker 3>is that when you have great training programs, there's a

0:12:57.170 --> 0:12:58.559
<v Speaker 3>real increase of.

0:12:59.150 --> 0:13:00.030
<v Speaker 2>people that know what.

0:12:59.950 --> 0:13:02.589
<v Speaker 3>They're looking for when a child's being groomed, because this

0:13:02.630 --> 0:13:07.740
<v Speaker 3>looks so different from a normal, healthy mentoring relationship. And

0:13:07.860 --> 0:13:11.100
<v Speaker 3>if you can train people to spot it, you can

0:13:11.260 --> 0:13:14.880
<v Speaker 3>actually cut down an offending timeline. Not only are you

0:13:14.960 --> 0:13:16.959
<v Speaker 3>helping the child right there in front of you in

0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:20.569
<v Speaker 3>this moment, you are also preventing future abuse of other

0:13:20.590 --> 0:13:23.390
<v Speaker 3>children that this predator hasn't come in contact with yet.

0:13:24.000 --> 0:13:26.620
<v Speaker 1>Rebecca Serndorf, it is a distinct pleasure having you on today.

0:13:26.660 --> 0:13:28.160
<v Speaker 1>I thank you for what you're doing on behalf of

0:13:28.200 --> 0:13:29.720
<v Speaker 1>the victims out in the world, and we'll keep our

0:13:29.740 --> 0:13:31.839
<v Speaker 1>fingers crossed we actually get some sanity here in the

0:13:31.880 --> 0:13:32.520
<v Speaker 1>state of Ohio.