Virginia's Mark Herring Unleashes Child Rapists, Cancels Mandatory Reporting
Steve Albertson of the Bull Elephant reveals:
Virginia's Attorney General issued a formal advisory opinion on September 12, 2014 that countermands legislative protection of sexually abused minors by removing the requirement that social workers, nurses, and others must report instances of sexual abuse. Now, according to Herring, they must report the rape of a young teenage girl only when it was the girl's father or guardian who perpetrated it..
The AG opinion, which in many important regards carries the force of law in Virginia, was issued by Herring in response to an inquiry from State Health Commissioner Marissa Levine. Levine inquired about the extent of certain obligations of nurses and others in positions of public responsibility (such as teachers, social workers, probation officers, and the like) to report evidence of child abuse or neglect. Virginia law requires that such people "who, in their professional or official capacity, have reason to suspect that a child is an abused or neglected child," to "report the matter immediately" to the relevant social services office.
Specifically, Levine inquired about whether, "upon reviewing the medical record of a fourteen-year-old girl who was pregnant and received services, such as prenatal or abortion services," a state health department nurse would be obligated to report that, particularly given that it is a crime in Virginia to have sex with 13- or 14-year-old girl.
The rest of Albertson's revelation is reported here
http://thebullelephant.com/mark-herring-invalidates-general-assembly-protects-rapists/
Actual Attorney General Letter (5 pages) Decriminalizing Child Rape
http://www.ag.virginia.gov/files/14-021_Levine.pdf
Herring says, in part, in his AG Opinion:
"It is my opinion that a Virginia Department of Health ("VDH") licensing inspector who is a nurse
and who, during the course of a hospital inspection, learns from the review of a medical record that a fourteen-year-old girl received services related to her pregnancy is not required to make a report of child abuse and neglect pursuant to Virginia Code§ 63.2-1509 unless there is reason to suspect that a parent or other person responsible for the child's care committed, or allowed to be committed, the unlawful sexual act upon the child. It is also my opinion that the VDH licensing inspector is not required to make a report to law enforcement of the crime of carnal knowledge of a child between the ages of thirteen and fifteen."