sexual-abuse

Pennsylvania Capitol Building. May 24, 2022. Harrisburg, Pa. (Photo by Amanda Berg, for the Capital-Star).

Pa. House panel advances relief for abuse victims in opposition to Senate amendment bundle

BY: and - April 18, 2023

Pennsylvania lawmakers on Tuesday took another step on the tortuous path toward long-sought legal relief for survivors of childhood sexual abuse, but the route to making it a reality remains to be mapped out. The House Judiciary Committee advanced standalone versions of a proposed constitutional amendment that would give abuse survivors a two-year exception to […]

COMMENTARY
Pennsylvania Capitol Building. May 24, 2022. Harrisburg, Pa. (Photo by Amanda Berg, for the Capital-Star).

I’m an abuse survivor. The Pa. General Assembly has to do better | Opinion

BY: - March 14, 2023

Changing and updating legislative rules are just the beginning -- not the end -- of addressing the issue.

The ceiling of the main Rotunda inside Pennsylvania’s Capitol building. May 24, 2022. Harrisburg, Pa. (Photo by Amanda Berg, for the Capital-Star).

Long-delayed relief for sexual abuse survivors passes Pa. House

BY: and - February 24, 2023

Proposals letting now-adults file civil lawsuits against their abusers still face challenges in the GOP-controlled Pennsylvania Senate

Reps. Gregory, Rozzi call on AG to investigate Southern Baptist sex abuse | Five for the Weekend

BY: - May 28, 2022

State Reps. Jim Gregory, R-Blair, and Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, sent a joint letter to Attorney General Josh Shapiro on Tuesday, asking the state's top prosecutor, and his office, to investigate reports of abuse within Southern Baptist Convention of churches in Pennsylvania.

Ten years after Sandusky case, more work needed to protect Pa.’s kids, advocate says

BY: - November 15, 2021

In 2017, Pennsylvania received more child abuse reports than any other year on record, according to state data

House passes statutory window for old child abuse lawsuits, splitting GOP majority

BY: - April 7, 2021

Wednesday's vote split the Republican caucus down the middle, a rarity in the legislature. All but one of the dissenting votes was cast by a GOP lawmaker.

Lawmakers want to use emergency powers to pass sexual abuse reform. Can they find the votes to pull it off?

BY: and - March 15, 2021

The margin for error is slim. To invoke the emergency powers, the House and Senate will need two-thirds agreement on a measure that has eluded action for years. 

Pa. corrections officer trainee charged with alleged sexual abuse of Fayette County youth

BY: - May 28, 2020

A state corrections officer trainee from Harrisburg was arrested for allegedly traveling multiple times to meet up with a 14-year-old Fayette County girl for sex.

COMMENTARY

Sexual abuse against gay and bisexual men brings unique stigma and harm | Opinion

BY: - August 30, 2019

At least 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused before their 18th birthday. This number rises to 1 in 4 men across their lifespan. The rates of sexual abuse and assault are even higher in boys and men from sexual minority populations.

COMMENTARY

‘This can never happen again:’ At Capitol rally, activists push for bill criminalizing ‘sextortion’

BY: - May 7, 2019

The bill would address a shortcoming in state law that now allows these cases to fall through the legal cracks, supporters argued Tuesday.

COMMENTARY

This important state policy change on sexual assault care is long overdue | Opinion

BY: - April 25, 2019

Hospitals need to have trained sexual assault examiners available at all times.