Statute of Limitations in Child Sex Abuse Cases – Support legislation that would expand the state’s statute of limitations, enabling more child sexual abuse victims to seek justice.

Considering the harrowing issues children must deal with in these sexual abuse cases, we must all understand that these civil and criminal filing limitations are nothing but a systemic means to deny justice and shield abusers. There should be no arbitrary time limit to how much these victims have suffered. There should also be no limit to the long arm of the law’s reach in these cases. Currently, the statute of limitations law in Pennsylvania allows victims of child sex abuse to come forward with criminal allegations until they are 50-years-old. The age cutoff for filing civil claims is 30. I support proposals that would completely end the statute of limitation on filing future charges against child sex abusers and raise the age threshold for filing civil suits to 50. I also advocate to open a two-year “window” so victims of past abuse may file claims retroactively.