Group discusses new protection for abuse victims

A group dedicated to helping victims of child sexual abuse spread the word about the extended statute of limitations for victims and the resources available to them at a panel discussion hosted in the Yuma Police Department community training room on Monday.

The panel included former Olympic speed skater Birdie Farrell, state Sen. Lisa Otondo, YPD Sgt. Henry Valenzuela and Diane Umphress, the executive director of Amberly’s Place, which helps victims of domestic violence and child abuse in Yuma.

In addition to telling people about the extended statute of limitations, the group shared information about the importance of victims of sexual abuse coming forward with their experience. The discussion included descriptions of what victims go through for civil and criminal prosecution, the difficulties and limitations in the national and local judicial system, the trauma their experiences incur and the resources they need.

The event opened with Farrell’s personal story of being sexually abused by a trusted friend and teammate when she was 15. She said she didn’t realize she was sexually abused until she was 26 and writing a paper in college on the topic.

“I didn’t think about it for the longest time,” Farrell said. “Then all of a sudden it came back to me, and I realized I had been sexually abused.”

Otondo added to that story to help explain how trauma could be forgotten so easily.

“Predators groom their victims,” she said. “They confuse them and make them wonder if what they did was actually wrong. Predators can be people we trust and respect, and their victims are children.

It can be difficult for them to understand what’s happening.”

Until the passage of the Arizona Child Protection Act (AZCPA) in May of this year, adults over the age of 20 couldn’t file lawsuits against people who sexually abused them as a child. With the passage of AZCPA, victims now have until the age of 30 to file a civil suit, which can give way to criminal proceeding. Victims born on or before May 26, 1999, have a one-time 18-month window to file a civil suit. However, that window closes Dec. 31, 2020.

“The clock has started,” Farrell said, which is the reason she is traveling to multiple cities in Arizona including Phoenix, Tucson and Lake Havasu City to tell people about this legislation and the opportunity victims in Arizona have.

The other two panelists, Valenzuela and Umphress, gave a local perspective on the issue. The YPD Child Sex Crimes Investigations unit, which Valenzuela heads, and Amberly’s Place work closely together to help young victims in Yuma.

Umphress said that the average victim doesn’t come forward until they’re in their 40s or 50s, which means that the current law is still short of ideal. Those pushing for the AZCPA originally wanted to extended the statute of limitations to an older age, but 30 was the compromise they reached with insurers and other institutions who were worried about the financial responsibility of the accused. The bill took 18 years to pass, and this worry was a large reason why.

Valenzuela’s unit works with children and families, and he said evidence is key to making sure he and his officers can help victims in court.

“The criminal justice system is set up to protect

the rights of the accused,” he said. “We don’t want to be wrongfully convicted if we’re innocent, so we try to surround the child with evidence.”

A key part of getting evidence is testimony from the victims, and allowing them more time to process what they’ve gone through to allow them to more easily step forward.

Valenzuela also said that the sooner a case is reported, the easier it is to carry out civil and criminal proceedings. The law protects every adult such as a teacher, a camp counselor, a parent who has a child’s friend

sleeping over, should that adult reports that a child may be being abused. And, if the adult has reason to believe abuse is happening, they are required by law to report it to the Department of Child Safety, he said.

Otondo added to this by saying, “Use your spidey sense: if you feel something’s wrong, report it.”

Aside from the statute of limitations, both Umphress and Valenzuela said there’s a need for more resources in specific parts of their respective organizations.

One resource that Umphress said she would like to see better funded is the availability to school counselors and social workers.

“A child molestation victim usually doesn’t come

out until they’re in their 40s or 50s and in that time, they can have a rough life, especially if they’re on their own,” she said. “Therapy is a real issue when it’s lacking, but when it’s there, it can also make it easier for us to report possible abuse.”

Valenzuela said the prosecutors need more resources and training.

“Prosecutors are overworked and under appreciated,” he said. “They get one week of training to deal with a stressful issue. If we

had the resources to train our prosecutors to handle child sex abuse cases, we’d be making our community safer.”

Both also said that mental health resources should be made more available to juveniles as well.

The Zero Abuse Project, a national nonprofit aimed at ending child sex abuse, led and organized this event. Farrell represented her organization, NY Loves Kids, of which she’s the CEO and co-founder.