Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster. Photo courtesy of ago.mo.gov

Attorney General Chris Koster says he wants lawmakers to write a law making it mandatory for any citizen to report sexual abuse of a child to the police.

He says after the former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky was indicted on child sexual abuse charges, his office began looking into Missouri’s laws, and the laws of neighboring states. Currently in Missouri, only certain professionals like teachers, social workers and clergy members are required to report that kind of crime to the Division of Family Services.

Koster says that’s not enough – those professions only have to contact Family Services, not the police. So he wants the legislature to enact a law that 18 other states have that require anyone who sees that type of crime to call 9-1-1. He says lawmakers are on board.

He says in those other states it is a misdemeanor to not file a report when being a witness to a child sex crime. Those other states are: Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey. New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.

 

AUDIO Allison Blood reports. Mp3 [0:59]