PENNSYLVANIA
Citizens Voice
By Robert Swift (Harrisburg Bureau Chief)
Published: January 23, 2013
HARRISBURG – Lawmakers should look at a major rewrite of state child protection laws from the perspective of a child seeking help and not necessarily because of what adults are suggesting, the chairman of a special task force told a joint House committee hearing Tuesday.
The Judiciary Committee and the Children and Youth Committee started a review of proposals to overhaul a statewide child protective services system under scrutiny in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
“Look at this from the child’s point of view,” said David Heckler, the Bucks County district attorney and former senator who chaired the Task Force on Child Protection. “I think it will give you a perspective you might not have otherwise.”
The task force has recommended strengthening the legal definition of what constitutes child abuse, expanding the list of individuals required to report child abuse, improving the state-run ChildLine reporting hotline and toughening penalties for the crimes of endangering the welfare of a child and child pornography.
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