PENNSYLVANIA
Penn Live
November 8, 2018
By Ivey DeJesus
Earlier this year, when Attorney General Josh Shapiro released the findings of a grand jury investigation into clergy sex abuse in Pennsylvania, he underscored one key recommendation issued by investigators.
Victims who had long ago been sexually abused by priests should be given a retroactive reprieve during which they could file lawsuits against predators, the grand jury said.
That recommendation seems destined for the dustbin for now. Pennsylvania lawmakers haven’t been able to agree on changes to state law that would allow victims to go to court.
And the decision by virtually every diocese investigated by the grand jury to establish victims compensation funds is drawing the ire of the state’s top law enforcement official and clergy sex abuse victims.
“It’s now clear that the Dioceses acknowledge the Grand Jury accurately unearthed horrific and extensive abuse and cover up and, as a result, victims deserve compensation no matter when their abuse happened,” Shapiro said Thursday. “However, the Grand Jury recommended that victims deserve their day in court – not that the church should be the arbiter of its own punishment.”
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