PENNSYLVANIA
Philly.com
by Maria Panaritis, STAFF WRITER
HARRISBURG – Rep. Mark Rozzi turned to Phil Saviano, sitting next to him inside the Capitol. Like Rozzi, Saviano was raped by a priest decades ago and has worked to expose such abuse.
But the Boston-area man’s efforts had huge impact: They helped spark the global clergy-sex abuse scandal in 2002 and figured in this year’s Oscar-winning film Spotlight.
Saviano was marquee draw on a panel assembled Wednesday by Rozzi to support a high-stakes bill that would open a new window for adult victims to sue the men or women who abused them as children and the institutions that could have, – but did not – discover or stop it.
“You are keeping victims alive here in Pennsylvania,” Rozzi told Saviano, “because they know they have opportunity here with this reform legislation.”
Saviano’s appearance capped an intensive two-day lobbying effort by victims’ advocates to win over key Senators on the bill, at the same time opponents – including the Catholic Church – are marshalling efforts to defeat it.
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