Missouri’s battle with concealed child abuse: Trey’s Law can end the silence | Opinion
When a child is sexually abused, silence becomes the abuser’s most powerful shield.
Too often, that silence is reinforced not only by fear and trauma, but also by legal agreements that discourage or intimidate survivors from speaking about what happened to them. Nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements — sometimes embedded in civil settlements — have been used in ways that restrict survivors of child sexual abuse from sharing the truth.
Missouri’s own history with abuse at unregulated youth facilities shows the cost of secrecy. At the Circle of Hope Girls Ranch, multiple women came forward in recent years with harrowing allegations of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse suffered while in the institution’s care. Prosecutors brought dozens of felony charges against the owners — including statutory rape and child abuse — only after survivors publicly shared their stories.
The silence that surrounded these allegations for years, despite reports to authorities and multiple lawsuits, kept the extent of the abuse hidden and allowed it to continue unabated.
Justice can seem further out of reach, considering research that suggests between 60% and 80% of survivors of child sexual abuse do not disclose their abuse until adulthood, often carrying the burden for decades before feeling safe enough to speak.
Congress has an opportunity to address that problem through the Terminating Restrictive Enforcement of Youth Settlements Act, known as Trey’s Law. Championing this bipartisan legislation, Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt and his colleagues recognize this fundamental truth: Protecting children must always come before protecting adults’ reputations.
The legislation would invalidate nondisclosure agreements that prevent survivors from speaking out about the sexual abuse of a minor, ensuring legal settlements cannot be weaponized to enforce silence.
Silence undermines public safety
Nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements that prohibit or restrict disclosure of child sexual abuse interfere with two of the most basic principles of child protection: timely and accurate reporting.
When survivors feel constrained — explicitly or implicitly — from speaking about their abuse, critical information may never reach the people who can act on it. Law enforcement agencies, child protection authorities, courts, the National Human Trafficking Hotline and anti‑trafficking organizations all rely on accurate disclosures from survivors to identify perpetrators and protect other children.
A private contract should never stand between a survivor and the ability to report abuse.
Yet in practice, confidentiality language can create confusion or fear among survivors about what they are legally allowed to disclose. Survivors may worry about civil liability, financial penalties, professional consequences or retaliation. This uncertainty alone can be enough to keep lifesaving information hidden.
History has shown that many large‑scale child abuse cases in schools, youth programs, faith institutions and community organizations were only uncovered because one survivor broke their silence. When survivors speak, patterns of abuse emerge. Perpetrators are identified. Systems are forced to respond. And other victims find the courage to come forward.
Transparency is not only about justice for past harm. It is about preventing the next child from becoming a victim.
Even when survivors disclose abuse years later, another vulnerability in our child protection framework remains.
If a victim discloses abuse years after it occurred — perhaps long after the statute of limitations has expired or when no child protective services investigation ever took place — the perpetrator may never be formally identified in a state’s child abuse and neglect registry.
Protecting survivors must also mean protecting the next child and future victims.
Survivors deserve the freedom to speak. Law enforcement deserves access to the information needed to stop repeat offenders. Communities deserve confidence that those who harm children cannot hide behind legal paperwork.
By advancing Trey’s Law, Sen. Schmitt is promoting a practical, survivor‑centered reform that strengthens reporting, empowers healing and helps prevent future abuse.
Congress should act, and act now.
Sonya Thompson is president of Compass Connections, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with offices in 122 cities, and a reach that serves children and families and communities from across the United States.