PENNSYLVANIA
WITF
Written by Mary Wilson, Capitol Bureau Chief | Jun 5, 2013
State lawmakers are getting ready to move forward with proposals to expand the legal definition of child abuse in Pennsylvania in an effort to flag more incidents of suspected mistreatment.
The changes come at the suggestion of a task force convened last year to study child protection laws and issues.
Sean McCormack, Chief Deputy District Attorney of Dauphin County, was one of a panel of testifiers at a hearing before the Senate Aging and Youth Committee on proposed changes to the definition. At times, the session took on the feel of an essay workshop, with advocates providing line-by-line feedback on word choice in the bill.
Too often, McCormack said, the state’s definition of child abuse becomes the subject of parsing exercises by well-meaning institutions.
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