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	Bills to Remove Statute of Limitations in Sexual Assault Cases Face Uphill Battle By Ivey Dejesus The Patriot-News April 3, 2011 http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2011/04/bills_to_remove_statute_of_lim.html Mark Rozzi can never face in a court of law the priest who he said sodomized him in a shower when he was 13. The priest died in 1999. Neither can his two childhood friends, who, he said, were also sexually molested by a priest. One committed suicide years ago. The other took his life in 2009. All were tormented for years by the abuse and their inability to take legal action. Count Rozzi among the groundswell of sexual abuse advocates urging the General Assembly to approve legislation that would allow adults who were sexually abused as children to seek the healing that comes with legal redress. "I had two years to come forward," said Rozzi, who allegedly was abused in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Allentown in 1984. "That's a joke. I couldn't come out and tell my story until I was 39." Rozzi, who lives in Berks County, said he still suffers nightmares, depression and panic attacks when he goes into a public bathroom. Two pieces of legislation introduced last month have been submitted to the House Judiciary Committee. Their prospects are unclear. House Bill 878, introduced by Rep. Louise Williams Bishop, D-Philadelphia, would eliminate the statute of limitation in sexual abuse cases involving minors. House Bill 832, introduced by Rep. Michael P. McGeehan, D-Philadelphia, calls for a suspension of the statute of limitation for two years, allowing victims to file civil charges regardless of when the abuse happened. McGeehan said he has written a letter to state Rep. Ron Marsico, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, urging him to expedite his bill. "Our greatest duty as legislators is to protect the innocent," McGeehan said. The Patriot-News placed several requests to interview Marsico, a Republican from Lower Paxton Township, but was unable to reach him. Marsico has said the committee's workload is too heavy to consider the bill. Supporters say attempts to enact the earlier bill were thwarted by the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, the legislative arm of the church headed by Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia. Bishop Joseph P. McFadden, head of the Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, is its president. "[Rigali] calls the shots and tells the conference what to do," said Sister Maureen Turlish, a victims' advocate and activist, who has called upon the church to be accountable. "It would take him one minute on the phone to get what he wants. If he wants them to support this bill, they would do it in a minute. Those bills could be passed in the first day of the legislative session with one order from Cardinal Rigali." Delaware, where Turlish lives, eliminated its statute of limitations in 2007. Amy Hill, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, said the group has not opposed changes to the statute of limitations on sexual abuse cases. The state has changed the statute from age 20 to 50 for criminal prosecutions and age 20 to 30 for civil actions. However, she said McGeehan's proposal to suspend the statute of limitations would create an "unworkable situation." "Over time memories fade, evidence is lost or never found, and in many instances perpetrators or witnesses may be deceased," Hill said. "The passage of time makes it nearly impossible for a church or any other organization to defend itself against allegations from 30, 40 and 50 years ago."
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