Victim advocate seeks statute of limitation input from abuse survivors

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro ignited a firestorm last year when he released his grand jury report on clergy sexual abuse and now lawmakers are learning just how hard it is to clear the smoke with regard to survivors.

Pennsylvania Victim Advocate Jennifer Storm announced Wednesday she is seeking testimony from any adult survivors of child sexual abuse regarding the numerous statute of limitation reform bills awaiting a vote.

The current statue allows survivors to file suit against their abusers until age 20. Various proposed bills would extend that to allow survivors access to civil courts for decades in the future.

A bill to open a two-year window in the statute of limitations to allow adult survivors timed out of court to file suit ran up against a road block in the state Senate last year.

Storm said she will take statements through Sept. 20 and use those narratives to shape her testimony for an Oct. 2 hearing before the Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee. Survivors may provide statements about their experience and their perspectives on statute of limitations reform either anonymously or with contact information.

“It is important to note that the testimony provided is considered public record and may be used by the Victim Advocate or reviewed by members of the Senate,” Storm said.

She said victim assistance coordinators with her staff are available to assist victims/survivors who wish to provide their statement by phone Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. at 800-563-6399.