Missouri senator renews effort to remove statute of limitations in childhood sexual abuse cases
By Krista Tatschl
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMBC) — “We live in Missouri where survivors of childhood sexual abuse were silenced.”
Sen. Brad Hudson isn’t opposed to a second swing at bat. His comes in the form of legislation – and it’s a swing for the fences.
“This is so important, so vital and we didn’t want it to slip through the cracks,” Hudson says from his desk in Jefferson City, Missouri, at the Capitol.
On Monday, Dec. 1, he refiled a bill with the Missouri Senate seeking to eliminate the statute of limitations on bringing civil suits in instances of childhood sexual abuse.
He filed it last session, too, but it stalled in a Senate committee.
“This is a marathon, not a sprint,” Hudson says.
Current Missouri law allows abuse survivors to sue their abusers up to the age of 31. Many survivors don’t come forward with their abuse until their 50s, or they wait until their abuser has died.
He says, “If we don’t do something … Missouri becomes a sanctuary state for pedophiles.”
Hundreds of other bills were filed Monday as well, and survivors of childhood sexual abuse are concerned Hudson’s bill will be buried in the stack.
“This is to help the neighbor kids down the street. This is to help the kids you go to church with or just all those in society that don’t get a chance to have their voice heard or are unable to find a positive way to move forward,” says John Hobbs.
As a child, Hobbs was abused by his Boy Scout leader for years, and last March, testified on behalf of Hudson’s bill to try to push it out of committee and put it to a vote on the Senate floor. He is ready to testify again if that’s what it would take to have success with Hudson’s bill.
“Oh, absolutely. We’ll do that again. That is difficult, though. You know, obviously, emotionally draining,” Hobbs says.
A woman who was sexually abused at the International House of Prayer–Kansas City, who goes by her first name, Gracia, also testified in March, telling her heartbreaking story of repeated abuse by ministry leadership and staff.
“These voices matter,” she says. “We will keep coming back until this is passed. We will keep coming back until Missouri’s law protects children instead of predators.”
Hobbs and Gracia both state they, and many other survivors, are willing to testify publicly and tell their stories multiple times to the Missouri Senate in order to allow future children who may experience sexual abuse to seek justice and possible restitution.
Hobbs says, “It’s all for them. This is for them. Making sure that they have the ability to come forward and tell their story whenever they’re ready, no matter what. And they’ll be believed, and they’ll get to have a fair chance in the legal system in the state of Missouri.”
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