Victims of Sexual Assault Lobby For State Law Reforms

Candace Braun

John Hardwicke Jr., 47, the former American Boychoir student who is pressing charges against the school, took his case a step further recently by taking part in a protest against state law on the steps of the Statehouse on Monday, according to a recent report by the Associated Press.

After attending the private school in Princeton during the late 1960s and early 1970s, Mr. Hardwicke made allegations against the American Boychoir School in 1999, stating that he was molested by several staff members while he was a student. Mr. Hardwicke, now living in Maryland with his wife and daughter, claims to have suffered depression as a result of the experience.

Mr. Hardwicke was reportedly part of the protest, which was in support of child sex assault victims who want the right to sue the institutions where they were abused, a right they currently do not have under state law. Schools, churches, and charities are currently protected under "charitable immunity," a legal defense which Catholic leaders and sexual assault victims in the state are lobbying against.

A measure to limit the protections that these institutions now have was passed by the state Senate last year, but has stalled in the Assembly.

The group lobbying against the current state law calls itself, "Fix the Law," and is asking Assembly Speaker Albio Sires to post the bill for a vote. Fix the Law announced its new website, www.fixthelaw.org, on Monday, calling on New Jersey residents to lobby Mr. Sires to pass the bill that would allow these sexual assault cases to move forward.

The website also has a link that asks residents to donate $33 toward a 30-second cable television ad supporting the bill.

Mr. Hardwicke's sexual assault case has been dismissed twice, first on the grounds that the American Boychoir School is an institution and not a person, and does not fall under the N.J. Sexual Abuse Statute. The case was later dismissed on the grounds that the school is protected under "charitable immunity," the state law which protestors spoke out against on Monday.

While Mr. Hardwicke's lawsuit was reinstated by the Appellate Division last year, the case has not yet been ruled on by the court, which held oral arguments in November.

Lawrence Lessig, the lawyer currently representing Mr. Hardwicke, was unavailable for comment on Tuesday.