Rep. John J. Lawn wants to end the statute of limitations for child sex crimes, reveals personal history of abuse

Waltham’s state representative John J. Lawn revealed in a May 6 op-ed for The Boston Globe that he was sexually abused by two adults as a child, and expressed his support for new bills that would end the statute of limitations for reporting child sex crimes in Massachusetts.

“The men who abused me followed a path now all too familiar: minimal consequences, quiet transfers, and systems that allowed the abuse to continue,” Lawn stated in his piece.

Lawn wrote that he had been abused by a “trusted leader” in his community and by a Catholic priest, both of whom have died. 

The representative argued that “trauma does not operate on a legal timeline,” calling for the Legislature to use its power and allow survivors to seek justice at any point in their lives. He also argued that removing the statute would keep perpetrators from evading punishment, like his own abusers did. 

This isn’t Lawn’s first push on the issue of child abuse statutes. In 2011, he met Waltham resident Roseanne Sliney, who had been unable to seek legal accountability for her abuser. Working together, they helped pass legislation that extended the filing deadline, which had initially given survivors only three years to file suits.

Currently, they can file civil suits regarding childhood trauma until they’re 53. If their memories of the abuse were suppressed, they have seven years following their recollection to file. Now, Lawn is arguing that isn’t enough. 

Though there is no vote scheduled for Lawn’s bill, momentum has been building across the commonwealth to abolish the statute entirely. “It’s a necessary step to align state laws with what researchers know about trauma — and to better protect children going forward,” Lawn wrote.