I was disgusted to read a Penn State Trustee’s email to The Chronicle of Higher Education that he is “[r]unning out of sympathy for 35 yr old, so-called victims with 7 digit net worth.” In case you needed a reminder, the “so-called victims” that Albert L. Lord[1], the Penn State Trustee email sender, is referring to are the victims of sexual abuse at the hands of then Penn State Assistant Coach Jerry Sandusky. Click here if you need a refresher course.
Lord went on to say that he is “tired of victims’ getting in the way of clearer thinking and a reasoned approach to who knew what and who did what.” Moreover, he continued, “[t]he notion that there can be only one point of view with respect to all this stuff, and trustees at Penn State should toe a line that reflects the politically correct point of view, is symptomatic of what ails us.” No, Mr. Lord, your disgusting views are symptomatic of what ails us.
As a Plaintiff’s side litigator, I have represented several victims of childhood sexual abuse in cases against schools. Here’s one thing I can tell you: The majority of the time, these cases are fought tooth and nail. Every effort is made to make the victims look like frauds. The defense hires people to try and blame everybody except who was in charge, whether it’s the child, the parents, whomever. As long as it’s not on them. So, unfortunately, Mr. Lord’s email and comments do not surprise me in the least.
Mr. Lord is trying to make us forget who the victims in this case are. The victims in this case are children who were sexually abused by an adult man. The victims in this case are children who were subjected to sexual abuse not only because of one sick individual but because of a university with enough sick individuals who chose to look the other way. They looked the other way because they chose football and the money and esteem that comes with it over protecting children. Mr. Lord wants us to forget about that because the victims are adults now and have money? Do you really think that the money has adequately compensated the victims for the horror they’ve had to endure? Well let’s delve into that for a minute.
There are experts who can opine as to what is likely to happen to a minor who is subjected to the atrocities that were inflicted upon the Penn State victims. But take it from a former NHL All-Star in Theo Fleury who was sexually abused by his junior hockey coach. Fleury said that “[t]he direct result of my being abused was that I became a f—ing raging, alcoholic lunatic.” And Fleury might even be one of the lucky ones if you can believe that. Victims of childhood sexual abuse live tortured lives[2]. An Australian study found that victims of childhood sexual abuse are 10.7 to 13 times more likely to attempt suicide than those who have not been abused. So excuse me if I’m not feeling all that sorry for the Penn State personnel who had to cut some large checks.
As you can see, the victims of childhood sexual abuse suffer inflict life-altering and sometimes life-ending injuries. You can’t truly compensate someone for what Penn State allowed to happen. But at the very least you can show empathy. However, there is no empathy coming from the likes of the Albert L. Lords of the world. The only thing you can do to them is hit them in the only place they care about, the pocketbook. After all, isn’t that what it took to convince Ford to stop making cars that it knew would kill people? Only when the punishment becomes more expensive than the crime will those at the top change their collective behavior. We as a society must hold the wrongdoers with their Albert L. Lord mentalities accountable whenever we are called on to do so.
[1] I don’t think you could come up with a more apt name for this story if you tried.
[2] If you are interested in further depressing yourself on this topic, this is a very well-written article.