In September 2023, a mother called Florida police and said that a 58-year-old karate instructor had lured her nine-year-old daughter into a closet, where he touched the girl and made the girl touch his genitals.
The karate instructor was taken in for questioning by police and released. He denied the girl came into the closet with him and denied sexually abusing her.
The man's wife said it was the first time that "something like this" had happened and she did not understand why the girl would accuse him.
The karate instructor was charged with lewd and lascivious molestation by a person 18 or older of a child under 12. He was denied bond and has been in jail since his arrest. The karate school was closed. Jessica Holly, Julian Quintana, and Kevin Boulandier "Bodycam footage shows officers speaking to karate instructor accused of molesting 9-year-old student" wsvn.com (Aug. 05, 2024).
Commentary
Having never been accused of sexual abuse in the past does not equate to innocence…just that the accused may never have been reported.
According to the Indiana Center for Prevention of Youth Abuse & Suicide, nearly 70 percent of child sex offenders have between one and nine victims, and at least 20 percent have between 10 and 40 victims. The average serial child molester can victimize as many as 400 children in their lifetime.
And, statistics also show that 85 percent of child sexual abuse victims never report the abuse. This may be compounded by the fact that more than 90 percent of child sexual abusers are people their victims "know, love and trust." "Child abuse statistics" www.indianaprevention.org.
These statistics show why getting a background check on someone working with or around children is an important first step, but it is never the end of child protection efforts.
Constant vigilance of all adults who work around children is key, and reporting suspected child sexual abuse are crucial.
All safe adults should, and adults who work with children must, report all suspected child abuse to child protective services or local law enforcement, per their state's mandated reporter laws, even if a child is accusing a trusted adult who has never been accused of child sexual abuse before.
