Pa. Lawmakers Push for Extending Statute of Limitations for Child Sex Abuse Victims
By Jan Murphy
Rep. Mark Rozzi came to the state Capitol on Wednesday to talk about justice for child abuse victims after a restless night of repeatedly re-living the nightmare of sexual abuse he suffered as a boy at the hands of a Catholic priest. The 42-year-old Berks County Democrat said he would like to close that chapter of his life that he was unable to talk publicly about until four years ago but until he feels justice is served, he can’t. Pennsylvania allows child sex abuse victims until age 30 to bring civil claims against their abusers. Unfortunately, he said victims operate on their own time schedule as to when they are ready to open up about the abuse they experienced. Oftentimes, he said it is not until they aged out of the opportunity to seek justice through civil litigation. “We just want to be given a chance to have our voices heard in a court of law and to expose the perpetrator,” Rozzi said. “I think the community has a right to know that these men and women are still out there.” He participated in a Capitol news conference to announce that legislation will be introduced in the Senate by Sen. Rob Teplitz, D-Dauphin County, that mirrors legislation already introduced in the House by Rep. Mike McGeehan, D-Philadelphia. An attempt was made in the spring in the House to address this issue but it never was put to a vote by the full House. Teplitz's bill, like the House bills, would open a two-year window for past child sexual abuse victims to file civil lawsuits or revive prior civil suits that were dismissed against their abuser. It also would raise the age limit to give child sexual abuse victims until age 50 to file a civil suit against their abuser, bringing it in line with the state's age limit of adult victims for bringing criminal charges in these cases. The legislation also eliminates the sovereign immunity defense that protects public officials and institutions in these cases. “Our bills would give victims of sexual abuse an opportunity to speak up and seek justice,” Teplitz said. “There’s no guarantee as to what would happen in the courtroom when they file that civil suit but we are giving them that opportunity to have that day in court.” The Foundation to Abolish Child Sex Abuse noted that California earlier this month passed a law lifting the statute of limitations in sexual abuse cases for the second time in 10 years. California's 2003 one-year “window” resulted in 300 predators being identified. It notes that Delaware, Hawaii and Minnesota also have passed similar laws. With that as a backdrop along with the child sexual abuse in this state brought to light in grand jury investigations of the Philadelphia Archdiocese and Jerry Sandusky, Rep. Steve Santarsiero, D-Bucks, said, “There is absolutely no excuse, no excuse whatsoever, for these bills not be brought up in the House and Senate.” But Rep. Ron Marsico, R-Lower Paxton Twp., who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, can think of one. He maintains it’s unconstitutional. In a statement issued earlier this year, Marsico said, “While it might feel satisfying to pass a bill that includes a window, any such provision would simply give false hopes to a victim whose civil claim has been barred by the existing statute-of-limitations because it would later be declared unconstitutional by the courts.” Rozzi doesn’t accept that argument and called it a smokescreen. He said that is a matter for the courts to decide. The Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania also opposes the legislation, saying it exposes potential suspects and institutions to financial liability for allegations they may have little supporting evidence. Besides that, the federation also feels it is unfair to insurers to change deadlines after they’ve expired. The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference also stands in opposition. It points out that allowing lawsuits to be filed for sexual abuse cases 30 to 50 years after the fact, “wouldn’t put one perpetrator in jail.” The conference’s spokeswoman Amy Hill said the Senate is considering sweeping reforms recommended by the Task Force for Child Protection to help protect children from sexual abuse. While that same task force did not address the statute of limitations issue in its recommendations, Hill noted it did point out the task force acknowledged that changes to the statute of limitations could create “the potential for staleness of evidence and possible constitutional concerns.” One of the task force members Delilah Rumberg, executive director of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, has since Rozzi becomes infuriated by his church’s arguments against opening a window for civil charges to be filed in cases of past sexual abuse. “If the church would have done what it was originally supposed to do when they knew the priests were sexually abused children and exposed them to the police department instead of moving them around, those priests would be in jail and we would not be in this position … this is the only recourse we have,” he said. He said any monetary gain victims would realize from a lawsuit could help victims and their families pay for counseling and medication that they have sought to deal with lingering effects of the abuse. Moreover, Rozzi said the money the Catholic Church is spending on lawyers to fight allegations of sexual abuse should be going into a fund to help victims. Hill said, “The dioceses of Pennsylvania have put significant resources into helping victims and their families obtain pastoral resources such as counseling, support groups or other social services to assist them in their healing and recovery from the traumatic experience of abuse. They will continue to do that as long as necessary.” Contact: jmurphy@pennlive.com
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