New bill on child abuse aims to halt false claims

May 19, 2011
By Sanne Specht
Mail Tribune

An Oregon House bill passed earlier this month aimed at discouraging false reporting of child abuse would have a chilling effect on an area of crime that is already under-reported, child abuse experts say.

House Bill 2183 would make it a violation — punishable by a $720 maximum fine — to knowingly make false allegations of child abuse to police or the Department of Human Services.

"The intent is good. But the unintended consequences could be very dangerous for some children," said Marlene Mish, executive director of the Children's Advocacy Center.

Proponents of the bill include House Judiciary co-chairman Wayne Kreiger, R-Gold Beach, and Rep. Sal Esquivel, R-Medford.

The bill is designed to discourage adults from using malicious allegations of abuse in bitter divorce or child custody cases, supporters say. FULL STORY

I left a comment there (subject to moderator approval)-

We whole-heartedly supported this bill. Contrary to what is being said here, false reporting is pandemic, and people use it ROUTINELY in divorce cases. Though the years, it has become a Standard Practice.

The accused do NOT have opportunity to "prove a negative"- that NOTHING HAPPENED, because you do NOT have access to your Constitutional Rights in these Civil courts of NO DUE PROCESS, where the accusation is the evidence, second-hand hearsay and whatever an imbecile CPS worker FEELS like writing in a report is JUST FINE.

In a system already stacked so heavily against the accused (especially the Falsely Accused), while not a real cure for the real PROBLEMS, at least making false reporting a punishable infraction may provide SOME relief.

We would make the penalties MUCH more severe, because these are near to being Capital Punishment for the falsely accused.