Two days after Senate leaders pledged their support, the chamber approved legislation that would open the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence and other institutions to sex-abuse lawsuits.
Senators voted 37-0 Wednesday to approve an amended bill sponsored by Sen. Mark McKenney, a Warwick Democrat, that would create a two-year “revival window” allowing previously time-barred claims against institutions and supervisors accused of enabling or covering up sexual abuse.
The window would open on July 1, 2026, and close on June 30, 2028.
McKenney’s proposal was introduced after Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha released a 282-page report in March detailing decades of abuse by clergy and covered up by the Diocese of Providence.
“We made sure last week that every senator had a hard copy of the Attorney General’s report,” McKenney said on the Senate floor. “It’s particularly difficult to read that online at over 280 pages, but if you…
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