Penn State Child Sex Abuse Scandal Just Another Example of an Institution Concerned more with Avoiding Scandal Than Protecting Innocent Children

To be sure the recent revelations of a cover up by the athletic department and school officials at Penn State is shocking and outrageous. Unfortunately, it is yet another example of an all too common response of institutional officials in circumstances where the possibility of a scandal over the sexual abuse of a child could damage the "reputation" or bring unwanted notoriety to that organization.

"We see actions/cases like the Penn State cover up of institutional knowledge of childhood sexual abuse by someone associated with that organization on a daily basis in every walk of life," said Irwin Zalkin of the Zalkin Law Firm who specializes in representing victims of childhood sexual abuse in hundreds of civil cases around the country. "The Catholic Church is not alone in this institutional behavior. We have cases involving public schools, Orthodox Jewish summer camps, the Jehova's Witnesses, Presbyterian churches and many others where, in some cases the conduct of the Penn State officials pales by comparison to that in cases we deal with daily" said Zalkin.

Until we, as a society, recognize the depth and breadth of the problem of child sex abuse within our many organizations that ostensibly offer a safe haven for children, we will, unfortunately, continue to be shocked at Penn State type revelations. "We need to end the scourge of child sex abuse in this country: to do that we must hold these institutions accountable both criminally and financially. When they feel it in their pocket book, they'll start taking the problem seriously," said Irwin Zalkin.

With offices in San Diego and New York, The Zalkin Law Firm is one of the premier sexual abuse and personal injury law firms in the country. The firm's lawyers have achieved groundbreaking results in numerous high-profile clergy abuse cases across the United States. Mr. Zalkin has negotiated over $200 million in settlements in Catholic clergy sex abuse cases.