NEW JERSEY EYES CHARITABLE IMMUNITY:

Sex abuse victims in New Jersey would be able to seek damages from churches and other nonprofit organizations under terms of a bill approved by a state Senate committee. The Senate Judiciary Committee also added an amendment that would make the change apply retroactively. Existing New Jersey law, known as the charitable immunity statute, prohibits any civil action against a church or charitable organization. New Jersey is one of nine states that still have such a law. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex, said the climate for change could be right following the release of reports recently that documented sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests nationwide from 1950 to 2002. One of the reports found there were 10,667 abuse claims during that time. “It’s because of the church sex scandal that we’re here today,” Vitale said. Last month, the Senate committee heard testimony from a number of men who said priests and adults in other organizations had sexually abused them as children and they had no legal recourse because of the charitable immunity law. The bill, now before the full Senate, has not yet been introduced in the Assembly. A similar bill was introduced in the last legislative session but stalled.