Paul Muschick: Why Sen. Toomey fought for law to compensate child pornography victims

Dec. 14--You can't measure the damage done by child pornography in dollars and cents. The scars last a lifetime, and money won't heal them.

But victims need financial compensation to cover costs they incur during their recovery, and some have struggled to get that compensation from their violators.

Collecting it should become easier under a new federal law enacted last week.

Victims are violated endlessly. The pervert who takes photos or videos of them is just the start. That degenerate then shares them with others, who keep passing them along.

This law creates the first road map for how much each of those creeps must pay in restitution to a victim.

The law, which was championed by Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, also offers an alternate path to compensation that is easier to collect than trying to squeeze money from deadbeats who may not be able to pay.

Producers of child pornography are liable for full financial restitution under the law. Each person who shares or possesses images is liable for partial restitution, a minimum of $3,000 each.

Victims also can claim a one-time payment of $35,000 from a newly created account within the federal Crime Victims Fund, which will be paid for by fines levied on child porn offenders.

The law is named the "Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act," for three victims. Amy is from central Pennsylvania and her fight to obtain restitution played a big role in this law being passed.

She was raped by an uncle starting when she was 8 years old, and the images were shared online. In cases against at least 180 offenders that played out over years, she collected a little less than half of the $3.4 million in restitution she sought to cover lost income, therapy and legal fees. Local and federal courts offered conflicting rulings in one of her collection attempts, until finally the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in.

In 2014, the court said Amy was entitled to payment but couldn't collect it all from a single defendant who possessed images of her. The justices ruled restitution must be "in an amount that comports with the defendant's relative role." That meant child pornography victims would have to identify and sue each viewer individually to collect the full amount, and the judges in those cases would have to figure out how to determine an appropriate penalty.

It took a few years, but with this law, Congress clarified the appropriate penalties and offered the additional avenue for compensation.

The law passed both houses of Congress unanimously and was signed by President Donald Trump on Dec. 7. The legislation originated in the Senate and had bi-partisan support, with 14 Republican and 12 Democratic sponsors, including both of Pennsylvania's senators, Republican Toomey and Democrat Bob Casey.

Toomey was one of the initial sponsors of the bill. He told me he got involved because Amy was a constituent and the law needed to be changed to help people in her position.

"I felt like somebody's got to do something about it, and that should be me," he said.

"This is such a horrific crime," he said.

Toomey wanted the law to go further, to make anyone who possessed or shared child pornography liable to pay full restitution to a victim. That, he said, would make it possible for a victim to collect all they were owed from one person who had the ability to pay, instead of chasing down many people who might not be able to pay much or anything.

"A victim like Amy ought to be able to go after a deep-pocketed perpetrator if there is one," he said.

That perpetrator could sue others in an attempt to spread out the damages, Toomey said.

"I'm much more sympathetic to her than I am about one of the perpetrators," he said.

Amy, who now is in her late 20s or early 30s, released a statement through Toomey's office.

"We were silenced for so long and it just feels amazing to be heard and to actually create change for others in the future," she said. "Thank you for making it easier for us to rebuild our lives. You do not know how much this means to all the victims and survivors out there and we are forever grateful. This kind of trauma just doesn't go away but now you have given hope to current victims and future survivors. Thank you!"

Amy's images were shared widely and have turned up in about 3,000 criminal cases, according to Toomey's office.

The Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act allows victims to claim restitution for medical expenses; psychiatric or psychological care and therapy; lost income; attorneys' fees; and other costs such as transportation. The amount collected from perpetrators and the Crime Victims Fund cannot exceed the total amount of documented losses or expenses.

"Allowing restitution for these victims is significant," said Jennifer Storm, Pennsylvania's victim advocate. "We know we can never fully restore a victim to a pre-crime status but if you can help with expenses like counseling or any other financial hardship" it can assist with their recovery.

The law took effect when signed and will apply to offenses committed after that date. It is not retroactive, meaning previous offenders will be sentenced according to what the law was when they committed their crime.

Congress and President Trump served child pornography victims well by enacting this law.

paul.muschick@mcall.com

610-820-6582

Paul Muschick's columns are published Monday through Friday at themorningcall.com and Sunday, Wednesday and Friday in The Morning Call. Follow me on Facebook at PaulMuschickColumns, Twitter @mcwatchdog and themorningcall.com/muschick.

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