PENNSYLVANIA
Philly.com
by Jonathan Lai, STAFF WRITER
The chairman of the Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee said Saturday he will recuse himself from all matters regarding a contested bill that would expand the ability of child sex-abuse victims to sue individuals and private institutions decades later.
State Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf (R., Montgomery) said he had recently learned of his law firm’s involvement advising a Catholic clergyman serving as a witness in child sex-abuse suits. Neither that nor his firm’s previous representation of a Catholic religious order sued by an abuse victim represent conflicts of interest, Greenleaf said, but he will no longer participate in proceedings regarding the measure to reassure the public.
“Perception and appearance in ethical matters are important – especially public perception of what legislators do in Harrisburg,” Greenleaf said in a statement Saturday. “In order to project a positive perception, I voluntarily will no longer participate in any further proceedings regarding H.B. 1947, nor will I vote on the bill.”
Greenleaf had not taken a public position on the bill. As head of the Judiciary Committee, he led a hearing earlier this month on the constitutionality of the legislation to extend the statute of limitations for child sex-abuse victims.
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