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LINCOLN — The Nebraska Supreme Court continued the erosion of the longstanding rights of Nebraskans to seek justice when the government turns a blind eye to the sexual abuse of children charged with their care.
Joshua M. v. State is the latest in a series of decisions handed down by the Nebraska Supreme Court interpreting existing Nebraska statutes as prohibiting lawsuits against Nebraska state and local governments when the underlying abuse was intentionally committed, regardless of the government’s total failure to act reasonably to protect children.
This decision is another gut-punch to innocent victims in Nebraska. It follows Governor Pillen’s decision to prioritize government immunity over the protection of children when he vetoed LB 25 less than two weeks ago.
The resounding message from today’s decision and Governor Pillen’s veto is clear: in Nebraska, the government will not be held responsible for failing to protect the children from the most heinous harms imaginable.
To get to where we are today as a State, the Nebraska Supreme Court’s 2020 Moser decision interpreted long-standing Nebraska statutes in a way it had never been interpreted until that decision came down. That decision drew a thorough and well-reasoned dissent by dissenting Justice Miller-Lerman pointing out the Court’s clear deviation from past decisions. Likewise, Justice Miller-Lerman again dissented in today’s ruling, asking the question, “Is this what the Legislature intended?” After Governor Pillen’s recent veto, the question also must be asked, “Is this what Governor Pillen intended?”
NATA appreciates the efforts of Nebraska legislators to pass legislation to partially fix this gaping hole in governmental accountability. Of course, those efforts were thwarted by Governor Pillen’s veto. The time has come to address this issue in full. NATA intends to support a complete remedy to this issue in the next legislative session, expanding LB 25 to cover the conduct of all Nebraska state and local governmental negligence, and not just actions limited to political subdivisions.
Nebraska values demand better than this. Nebraska deserves a government that is held accountable for its negligence, period. NATA encourages all Nebraskans to contact their State Senators and ensure they know where Nebraska citizens stand on this issue – on the side of Nebraska children and their safety.
