PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive
By PennLive Editorial Board
The scene on the Capitol steps last week was heart-warming, even though at its core it was a protest. The star was Libre, the horribly abused the Boston terrier puppy whose recovery is nothing short of miraculous.
With Libre their call to action, hundreds of people demanded tougher legal penalties for those convicted of abusing animals. As state Sen. Richard Alloway, R-Franklin, noted, Pennsylvania is one of only three remaining states without a felony cruelty statute.
“Libre’s Law,” introduced by Alloway as Senate Bill 1372, would increase some penalties for animal abuse and add a third-degree felony category for offenders who intentionally cause death or serious physical injury to an animal.
Libre, now 4 months old, was found hours from death on July 4 (hence his name, which means “liberty” or “freedom”) and Alloway’s bill looks to be on the fast track to passage. Identifying opposition has been next to impossible – who is against punishing people who hurt puppies?
But that’s why we can’t help but compare the outcry in Libre’s case to the stalled legislation that would give the victims of child abuse a better chance of confronting their abusers and winning some measure of redress in the civil court system.
House Bill 1947, to eliminate or extend statutes of limitation in criminal and civil cases involving child sexual abuse. sailed through the house in April by a vote of 180-15. That bill would have:
* Eliminated the criminal statute of limitations on most child sex crimes.
* Allowed an individual to file a civil action against institutions and organizations based on child sexual abuse until the age of 50, rather than the current 30.
* Eliminated time limits on when victims can file a civil action against certain individual defendants, including the perpetrator; any individual who conspired with the perpetrator of child sexual abuse; and any individual who knew of child sexual abuse but failed to report the abuse to law enforcement or a child protective services agency.
* Eliminated the criminal statute of limitations for a conspiracy or solicitation that facilitates the offenses.
* Lowered the standard for actions against governmental defendants from “gross negligence” to “negligence.”
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