We long have taken the position — and believe an overwhelming majority of our region and state share the position — that our police, courts and government as a whole should be tough on crime.

That certainly includes, first and foremost, the atrocities that are instances of child sexual abuse and molestation.

Proposals that unfortunately have been stalled in our state Legislature would allow more violent criminals to be prosecuted and held accountable for some of the worst crimes imaginable.

As one advocate for survivors of these crimes noted in last Wednesday’s edition of the Sun-Gazette, “children’s rights should be protected since they really have no means when they’re a child to protect them.”

These proposals account for the trauma, the awful situations the survivors of such assaults must rise above to bring these monsters to justice.

While we recognize that there are valid concerns about due process and the right to a presumption of innocence by our justice system, any change in the statute of limitations still requires that charges proceed through trials and still affords the accused an opportunity to defend themselves.

We believe that the law can be modified to better ensure justice for the victims of these horrible crimes, and we hope our state Legislature can begin treating this matter with the focus and attention it deserves.