Will Pennsylvania legislators leave victims of priest sex abuse out in the cold?

By Kathryn Robb And Marci Hamilton
Patriot News
November 18, 2019

https://bit.ly/2ppDRSq

There is a dark chill in the air. And, it is not the advancing cold winds of Old Man Winter.

It is the bitter chill of injustice.

That chill is swirling in the chambers of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, as legislative leaders continue to fail victims of child sexual abuse and the future safety of the children of this Commonwealth.

Many Pennsylvanians, and indeed, many Americans, were appalled when Attorney General Josh Shapiro released the chilling Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report in August 2018, detailing the abuse by 301 priests accused of sexually assaulting over 1000 young children.

However, what may be lost in the minds of many citizens and in the headlines of faded newspapers, is that another report was released in 2005. In September 2005, the Philadelphia Grand Jury released a 400-page report on child sexual abuse in the Philadelphia Archdiocese, the report revealed shocking facts about the horrific grooming and sexual abuse committed on hundreds of children by dozens of priests.

Many of these dangerous predators were carelessly shuffled from parish to parish, and community to community, with no warning to trusting parents and the public at large. That report was released almost 15 years ago, all the while the legislature took no action. How many children were sexually assaulted by unidentified predators during that period?

We’ll never know exactly, but the social science data indicates that everyday approximately 160 children fall victim to sexual assault. Given the science, the number of children harmed during this 15-year period of legislative inaction is undoubtedly high.

As a growing number of states across the country offer victims of child sexual abuse a clear path to justice and healing, the Pennsylvania General Assembly continues to play a cruel waiting game for victims, leaving them outside the comforts of our justice system. There is a clear national trend of legislatures making significant measures to afford victims of child sexual abuse the justice they deserve. This year 40 states plus the District of Columbia introduced statute of limitation reform legislation.

Twenty-three states plus the District of Columbia passed SOL reform legislation. Most notably, eight states have passed revival statute of limitations laws in 2019. Washington D.C passed a 2-year window, Montana passed a 1-year window, Arizona passed a 19-month window, New York passed a 1-year window, New Jersey passed a 2-year window, California passed a 3-year window, and just this month North Carolina passed a 2-year window, to name a few.

Vermont’s new law is the gold standard of justice and child protection by reviving all claims. The national movement is clear, as is the Pennsylvania General Assembly’s biting passivity.

And what have legislative leaders, especially Sen. Joseph Scarnati, offered to these victims? The short answer is – essentially nothing. No window to identify hidden predators, and the ruse of an unlikely constitutional amendment. Fifteen years of offensive foot dragging, especially alarming given the risk to so many children. And what do they offer? A long, narrow and crooked road to justice, one treacherous path covered in thin ice of electoral instability and legislative uncertainty. A challenging road to nowhere.

The political cover many Pennsylvania legislators seek is simply incompatible with notions of justice and fairness. While legislative leaders cling to political protection, the children of Pennsylvania are left unprotected as the present archaic statute of limitations allows sexual predators to roam freely — in neighborhoods, schools, and youth serving organizations.

And what about those victims from the past that continue to wait for their justice? As many Pennsylvania legislative leaders seek political shelter, once again, those victims of child sexual abuse are left out in the cold; they continue to be exposed to the harsh climate of justice denied, while Sen. Joesph Scarnati and other legislative leaders offer them thin worn blanket of false hope.