Child Sex Abuse Archives | Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman LLP

Statute of Limitations for Sexual Assault in Hawai’i and California

Posted on October 2, 2025October 7, 2025 by Candice Paddock

Does rape have a statute of limitations? The answer to that question depends on a few factors, not the least of which is state law. The question of how long a person has to report sexual assault is also critical for survivors seeking justice.

The laws governing the time period (statute of limitations) vary widely across states due to differing legislative priorities, societal views on trauma, and evolving understandings of how trauma affects survivors of childhood and adult sexual assault. In states like California and Hawai’i, recent legal changes have expanded options for survivors.

Why Statutes of Limitations Vary

The statute of limitations for sexual assault differs by state based on factors like:

the severity of the crime
the victim’s age
evidence availability

For instance, serious felonies like rape often have longer or no time limits compared to lesser offenses, as states prioritize justice for severe crimes. Some states extend deadlines for cases involving minors, recognizing that trauma may delay disclosure.

Advocacy has also driven reforms, with states like California and Hawai’i revising laws to accommodate survivors’ needs. Additionally, advancements in DNA evidence have prompted some states to extend or eliminate time limits when new evidence emerges, impacting the rape statute of limitations.

Hawai’i Bill Empowers Sex Trafficking Victims to Seek Justice

Posted on August 19, 2025August 28, 2025 by Candice Paddock

A bill awaiting Hawaii Gov. Josh Green’s signature could give sex trafficking survivors new power to seek justice—not just against their traffickers, but also against the individuals and businesses that profit from their exploitation.

House Bill 111, which was approved by both the Hawaii House and Senate earlier this year, addresses critical gaps in how the state handles sex trafficking. If signed into law, the bill would:

Allow sex trafficking victims to file civil lawsuits against people, businesses, or institutions that financially benefit from sex trafficking or sexual exploitation.
Extend the statute of limitations for civil claims related to sex trafficking from two years to ten.

According to advocates, this legislation could be a turning point for victim empowerment in Hawai’i, where sex trafficking remains one of the most underreported crimes.

Incarcerated Youths Victimized by Sexual Predators, Unsafe Environments

Posted on April 23, 2025August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

Victims of sexual abuse at juvenile detention centers are increasingly sounding the alarm, exposing lax management and security practices that have placed vulnerable young people in danger.

Lawsuits in states including Oregon, Illinois, Washington, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New Hampshire, California and New York detail sexual abuse in state- and county-run juvenile detention centers that include allegations of rape, forced oral sex and beatings by corrections officers, nurses, kitchen staff, chaplains and others.

In Illinois, 667 people have alleged they were sexually abused as children at youth facilities in Illinois through lawsuits filed since May. The most recent Illinois complaints detail alleged abuse from 1996 to 2021 from the accounts of 272 people who were in state-run youth juvenile detention facilities and a county-run Chicago center.

Troubled Teen Facilities: A Breeding Ground for Abuse?

Posted on April 10, 2025August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

Treating troubled teens has become a growth industry even as reports of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse of young offenders participating in these programs have become more widespread.

A Troubled History

Many trace the beginnings of the troubled teen industry to a 1950s organization called Synanon, which was a drug rehabilitation program that involved no doctors. One of the methods included a game that used verbal abuse to help drug addicts take responsibility for their part in their addiction. Over time, the game also began to involve physical abuse.

Other groups began to take on this “tough love” approach to helping at-risk teens. These approaches were explored on TV talk shows and even in a 1985 TV movie called Toughlove.

Report Details ‘Staggering Pervasiveness’ of Sex Abuse Within Catholic Diocese

Posted on September 17, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

More than 150 priests, deacons, teachers and seminarians within the Archdiocese of Baltimore have been accused of sexually abusing more than 600 children and young adults over an eight-decade period.

An explosive report by the Maryland Attorney General’s Office details pervasive sexual abuse within the country’s oldest Roman Catholic diocese. In some cases, parishes, schools and congregations had more than one alleged abuser at work. One, St. Mark’s Parish in Catonsville, had 11 alleged abusers living and working there between 1964 and 2004. One deacon admitted to molesting more than 100 children.

Victoria Chang News Commentary: New Hawai‘i Law Puts Sex Abuse Survivors ‘Front and Center’

Posted on July 23, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

“Thanks to the 2024 legislature, Hawai‘i is taking an important step toward recognizing the unique challenges facing survivors of sex abuse, helping them on the long road to recovery and justice,” Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman’s Victoria Chang writes in a Hawaii Star-Advertiser guest commentary this week regarding the passage of Senate Bill 2601.

Signed into law by Gov. Josh Green earlier this month, SB 2601 prioritizes the victim. Unlike criminal laws focusing on punishing perpetrators, civil lawsuits hold businesses and institutions accountable for failing to protect children. The new law acknowledges that most survivors do not report their abuse, and those who do often delay reporting by an average of 20 years.

Child sex abuse cover-up allegations rock Southern Baptist Convention

Posted on June 20, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), the largest Protestant denomination in the United States, has been rocked by allegations of widespread sexual abuse by pastors, church employees and officials.

A 2019 independent investigation resulted in a 300-page report that uncovered sex abuse cases dating back more than two decades. The report revealed that denomination leaders ignored and covered up sex abuse allegations while vilifying sex abuse survivors. At least 200 abusers within the SBC have been convicted or pleaded guilty to sex offenses, according to independent news reports.

Kamehameha Schools’ Shameful Legacy of Sexual Abuse

Posted on June 12, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

A towering symbol of Hawai‘i pride, Hawai‘i’s Kamehameha Schools has educated some of the Hawaiian Islands’ leading lights since 1887. Named for the monarch who united the Hawaiian Islands, Kamehameha’s boarding school on Oahu provided families of native Hawaiian descent the opportunity to educate their children on a campus with more than 70 buildings, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, an athletic complex that seats 3,000, and a resources that rival those of the world’s most-elite private schools.

The school’s storied history, however, belies a dark secret that has only recently come to light. For generations, school administrators covered up what lawsuits by more than 30 former students have described as decades of “monstrous sexual abuse” perpetrated largely against male boarders who were entirely in the trust and care of Kamehameha Schools.

Brave Sexual Abuse Victims are Coming Forward and Making a Difference

Posted on April 24, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

With its narrow focus on catching and punishing offenders, the criminal justice system too often leaves crime victims feeling forgotten, and in many cases victimized all over again. That’s especially true for victims of child sexual abuse, many of whom endure years of torment before bravely coming forward.

During National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, we recognize the key role that our civil justice system plays in helping these individuals. Unlike the criminal courts, civil litigation focuses squarely on helping victims obtain justice and holding responsible parties accountable.

It’s an honor to help victims achieve a measure of justice through monetary damages and awards against perpetrators and parties that too often turn a blind eye to their responsibility to protect individuals in their care.

Lawsuit: San Diego Catholic Diocese Hid Assets from Sex Abuse Victims

Posted on March 20, 2024August 18, 2025 by Galiher DeRobertis & Waxman

A new lawsuit claims the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego attempted to hide real estate holdings valued at more than $450 million to avoid paying out legal settlements to hundreds of victims of childhood sexual abuse.

The lawsuit follows a February announcement from the diocese that “staggering” legal costs from hundreds of new sex abuse lawsuits could force it to file for bankruptcy.

Cardinal Robert McElroy wrote in a letter to parishioners that most of the assets were “depleted” due to settling earlier abuse claims. Facing new lawsuit filings, the diocese may consider bankruptcy to compensate victims, he wrote.