AUTHOR: Jeff Leach

DATE FILED: 03/06/2023

CAPTION TEXT: Relating to elimination of limitations periods for suits for personal injury arising from certain offenses against a child.

RELATED BILL: Texas Senate Bill 206 & Texas Senate Bill 751

HELP US SUPPORT Texas House Bill 206 & Texas Senate Bill 751 to eliminate Statute of Limitations for Child Sex Abuse! PLEASE SHARE!  It takes less than a minute to send a letter to your Texas representatives or join the list of supporters, by going to… TexasSOLReform.org 

The neuroscience behind the trauma of childhood abuse explains why most survivors of child sexual abuse delay the disclosure of their abuse. Trauma causes stress hormones to shut down brain pathways, causing memories to be buried, often resurfacing later in life, with certain triggering events or, ideally, with psychological treatment. The average age of disclosure of CSA is 52, and with our current laws, most Texas survivors of older abuse are barred from seeking justice in either criminal or civil courts.

The effects of child sexual abuse has been estimated to cost the federal government over $9 billion dollars a year6. The adverse effects of childhood trauma can lead to multiple health risk behaviors7 as adults, leading to negative impacts on lifelong health. It is time to shift the cost of child sexual abuse away from victims and taxpayers to the ones who caused it.

The long-term effects of trauma from CSA, such as depression, PTSD, chronic anxiety, suicide risk, substance use disorder and autoimmune disease, often keep victims from living a fully functioning life,  much less pursue justice in a timely manner. It should never be “too late” for survivors to speak up. HB206 keeps our children and our communities safer.