PENNSYLVANIA
The Morning Call
Why PA should change statutes of limitation on sex abuse crimes
I am not Catholic.
I am a survivor of child sexual abuse. From the ages of 10-12, I was repeatedly violated by a man my parents trusted. My abuse only ended when my abuser became engaged to be married. I remember feeling relief that my nightmare was over. I didn’t understand at age 12 that it was not over, nor would it ever be over.
At the age of 17, I ran into him at a local town carnival. He was pushing his newborn daughter in a stroller. He creepily proceeded to tell me how much he enjoyed changing her diapers because he found it fascinating to look at her anatomy.
I summoned the courage to report my abuse at the age of 25. I learned I had waited too long. I lost my criminal rights at age 14 and my civil rights at age 18 because of Pennsylvania’s statutes of limitations at that time. To my horror, I also learned that he now had more daughters and was employed as a school janitor.
Legally I knew I couldn’t just accuse him without the very real threat of a slander or defamation lawsuit. I needed incontrovertible proof.
I hired a private investigation firm, contacted my abuser and arranged to meet him. He didn’t know we were surrounded by private detectives, who clearly heard him confess that he had molested me and then apologize for what he had done to me as a 10-year-old girl.
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