Editorial: There's no excuse for not reporting child sexual abuse

How hard is it to report suspected sexual abuse of a minor?

In recent years, we have been buried under an absolute avalanche of proof that children have been sexually abused, if not outright raped, by people in positions of authority.

A 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report indicated a minimum of 1,000 victims over the course of 70 years at the hands of 300 priests. It involved a strategy of silencing the reports and relocating the priests.

In 2011, Pennsylvania landed in the national news with the arrest of retired Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky for child sex abuse crimes involving boys participating in his Second Mile charity for at-risk kids. He was convicted in 2012 and is serving a sentence of 30 to 60 years at SCI-Laurel Highlands.

But three other people also served time. Three Penn State executives at the time — President Graham Spanier, Athletic Director Tim Curley and Vice President Gary Schultz — paid the price for child endangerment after having information about Sandusky’s crimes and not reporting them.

Both incidents have strengthened state law for reporting suspected child abuse. Pennsylvania should have the best trained mandated reporters in the country. Pennsylvania children should be as protected as possible.

But the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office is investigating whether McKeesport Area School District employees erred — or committed a crime — in not reporting a sexual interaction between district security guard Alexis Brown, 24, and a 17-year-old student until November 2023. The conduct occurred in May.

There are holes in the public information, not least of which would be when McKeesport Superintendent Tia Wanzo knew what. That’s where the DA’s review comes in, and that’s as it should be. Just like suspected sexual abuse, this is an issue that should be reported and investigated to determine whether something untoward happened. An investigation is not a determination of guilt.

However, it is an indication that everyone — everyone — needs to get better about taking sexual crimes against minors seriously. The U.S. Justice Department issued a report Thursday that said the FBI has failed to report cases to law enforcement, even after changes were made following the abuses of former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar.

If the FBI can fall down on its mandatory reporting obligations about half the time, as indicated in a review of more than 300 cases from 2021 and 2023, it would seem that almost any agency would have cover for its failures.

They shouldn’t. This isn’t complicated. It shouldn’t require a detailed review of the most up-to-date laws.

If you suspect that a minor is being sexually abused, you report it.