The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC) is the leading national organization supporting professionals who serve children and families affected by child maltreatment and violence, including child sex abuse and child pornography. As a multidisciplinary group of…
A Week in Washington – Supreme Court Observations
Ominous Beginnings The words in the chapel read “Mary console the children of a land sprinkled with blood and tears.” My trip to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception at Catholic University in Washington, DC was…
Opinion: Paying a price for child pornography
Sometimes, justice requires being fair even to those who don’t deserve it. And justice in this case means rejecting the argument that Paroline must pay for all his fellow criminals.
Wilderness Therapy Settings: An Industry in Need of Legal and Regulatory Oversight
Wilderness therapy, aimed primarily at adolescents presenting with problem behaviors, includes a range of interventions that incorporate nature and the wilderness as prominent aspects of treatment. In theory, wilderness therapists seek to effect both behavioral and attitudinal changes. In the…
Why crime victims need their own voice in the criminal justice process
Last week, I argued before the Supreme Court in Paroline v. U.S. & Amy. As the case caption itself suggests, our criminal justice system is shifting, at least to some modest degree, from a two-sided, “State v. Defendant” model to…
Paroline decision will have worldwide impact
The impact of the court’s decision will be felt far beyond U.S. borders. Individuals consume more than 15 million child sexual abuse images in an international market valued at between $3 billion and $20 billion annually. Due to the rapid…