Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP, is committed to helping victims of youth organization child sexual abuse bring their perpetrators to justice. Youth sports and recreational institutions have a duty to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children and teenagers. Unfortunately, many of these youth-serving organizations fail to have the right policies and procedures in place to prevent sexual predators from abusing their power and inflicting unspeakable harm on children.
Advocates for victims of youth sexual abuse
Volunteer-supported and for-profit mentoring networks for children have to be held accountable for situations in which their inaction, complacency, or complicit behavior enabled innocent children to be victimized by sexual predators. Recent sexual abuse litigation against the Boy Scouts of America and other youth organizations illustrates how rampant and far-reaching the problem is.
Many of our clients lived for years in fear and shame, thinking they were alone in their suffering or somehow did something wrong to encourage their abuse. We understand that confronting sexual abuse at the hands of trusted leaders is incredibly difficult, and have the resources to help survivors seek justice with a civil lawsuit.
Whether it happened in summer camp, the Boys Scouts, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, or another youth organization, Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP, can help you secure the compensation you rightfully deserve. Even if the abuse took place years ago, childhood sexual assault victims may still be eligible to sue, thanks to Texas’ recent legislation that extends time limits for bringing a civil suit to 30 years after the victim turns 18. That means that survivors have until the age of 48 to seek legal recourse for their suffering. To learn more, speak with a Dallas sexual abuse victim lawyer about your case today.
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Sexual Abuse in Boy Scouts
The nonprofit Boy Scouts of America (BSA), which has more than 2 million youth participants, sought bankruptcy protection last year, after an onslaught of lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse by its scoutmasters and leaders. Court documents show than over 12,200 boys reported being molested in the program between 1944 and 2016, but experts believe the number of victims is likely substantially higher. Many victims have been hesitant to speak out against their abusers, who held influential positions in local businesses, churches, and schools.
According to internal records released by the Boy Scouts in earlier litigation, there are more than 5,000 suspected child molesters within their ranks. BSA called these the “Perversion Files,” yet when reports surfaced of boys being groped, fondled, and raped, the organization was more interested in preventing scandal than protecting children from known pedophiles.
The BSA created a Victims Compensation Trust to help mitigate the tremendous liability of the sexual abuse allegations. Compensation may be available for victims who were molested not only by Scoutmasters, but camp directors, scout employees, and other volunteers within the organization. In order to seek reparations through this fund, victims must file their claims by November 16.
A Boy Scout sexual abuse lawyer at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP, can help you file the claim and outline what types of documentation and information are necessary.
Youth sexual abuse in sports organizations
Allegations of sexual abuse in youth sports are becoming increasingly common. It is a parent’s worst nightmare – sending your child off to swimming practice, a football game, or gymnastics class, only to learn that coaches and others in a position of trust abused their authority. Sports teams and clubs can become a safe haven for children, but what happens when volunteers and staff are not properly screened, or policies are in place that enable abuse to take place? Some youth sports organizations cultivate a culture that normalizes inappropriate interaction between students and staff, which only serves to perpetuate the victimization of children.
If it can be shown that a sports organization failed to comply with the 2017 Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act, there may be a strong civil case for damages. Under this important legislation, organizations must limit one-on-one interactions between minors and adults, promptly investigate sexual abuse claims, and enact policies and regulations to prevent abuse and create a safe environment.
Coaches, coaching assistants, and athletic directors often have unsupervised contact with youth athletes during out-of-town tournaments and training trips. If you suspect that abuse has taken place, reach out to Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP, for experienced legal guidance.
Sexual abuse victim lawyers seek justice on your behalf
If your child was sexually abused while in a youth sport or recreational program, do not hesitate to contact our Dallas personal injury lawyer at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP. Our experienced attorneys provide compassionate yet powerful representation in youth sex abuse cases.
Organizations may be held liable for a number of wrongdoings:
- Inadequate screening and background checks
- Inadequate supervision of staff and volunteers
- Failure to implement policies to prevent sexual abuse
- Failure to investigate sexual abuse allegations
- Failure to report suspected abuse
- Conceals evidence that sexual abuse took place
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Why You Need a Sexual Assault Lawyer for Your Civil Lawsuit
Our Dallas youth organization sexual abuse lawyers at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP fully understand that the physical and emotional trauma that sexual assault victims experience can be intense, severe, and overwhelming. Our compassionate, dedicated attorneys are ready to take some of the burden of fighting for justice and accountability off of your shoulders. There are a number of potential benefits to partnering with a North Texas Boy Scout sexual abuse attorney at our firm:
- If you have been a victim of child sexual abuse in youth sports, you need to focus on healing – physically and emotionally – and beginning to rebuild your life. Given the amount of stress and trauma you are already experiencing, trying to represent yourself in this claim can quickly overwhelm you. Instead, the right attorney will leave no stone unturned in an aggressive quest for justice on your behalf while you focus on what matters most – your well-being.
- Your lawyer will thoroughly investigate everything that happened. As you might imagine, rather than focusing on preventing child sexual abuse within youth serving organizations, people and organizations accused of perpetrating and/or allowing sexual assault to occur rarely admit to what happened without a strong fight. An experienced attorney will know the right questions to ask, the right people to contact, and the right documents and records to examine.
- Damages resulting from physical injuries are sometimes easier to determine, as medical bills can be relatively simple to quantify. However, many sexual assault cases are highly complex, making the determination of these damages more nuanced, not to mention the devastating psychological trauma that you may experience for the rest of your life due to what has happened to you. Attorneys with extensive experience handling these cases will be best-positioned to evaluate and value your damages so as to maximize the amount of financial compensation that you receive.
- An attorney can communicate and negotiate directly with the insurance company, so you do not have to worry about it. Insurance companies are businesses with a laser-like focus on the bottom line. In other words, they will do everything possible to minimize the amount of financial compensation that you receive. Our attorneys at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP have found that many victims that attempt to negotiate directly with an insurance company only receive lowball settlement offers that are far below the true market value of their claims. By hiring an attorney, you communicate to the insurance company that you are fully prepared to take your case all the way to trial if necessary, and that often results in the insurance company extending a fair settlement offer earlier in the process.
- Most civil cases settle out of court, but our attorneys at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP would not advise that you settle your case unless the insurance company has presented a reasonable settlement offer to you. In the event that the other side refuses to present a fair settlement offer to you, there is a chance that your case may go to trial. If this happens, an attorney that is experienced at litigating these cases and achieving successful outcomes in sexual abuse trials can help you maximize your financial recovery.
Successful litigation can ease the heavy financial hardships that victims endure. Protect your rights to compensation by working with a youth organization sexual abuse lawyer Dallas residents have come to trust. Call today to schedule a confidential case review, free of charge.
