The governor campaigned on protecting victims of sexual abuse during his campaign for office in 2022.
In 2022, Governor Josh Shapiro campaigned on his work as Pennsylvania attorney general to expose systemic sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.
“I sought justice for victims of abuse and put predator priests behind bars. As Governor, I’ll continue fighting for accountability for victims of sexual abuse,” said Shapiro during his campaign.
Former lawmakers who are survivors of child sexual abuse have claimed that Shapiro has not done enough to protect survivors during his term as governor.
Former Democratic state representative for Clearfield and Elk Counties Bill Wachob, who was abused as a preteen, wrote an open letter on the issue.
“Here was a guy that made this such a pivotal issue, now in charge of the state. You would think that the governor who exerted an enormous amount of leadership… when he shepherded [the investigation] through the grand jury process and issued the report, that he would be able to at least get the Senate to act on it,” wrote Wachob in the letter.
Wachob and other survivors are advocating for the state to open a temporary window for survivors to file lawsuits even though the statute of limitation has passed.
The Shapiro administration has blamed the state Senate for the inaction.
“It is time for Senate Republicans to finally stand up to the powerful, allow a vote on this bipartisan, commonsense, and moral legislation, and give survivors of sexual abuse the justice and closure they deserve,” said spokesperson Alex Peterson.
“I know that when a Governor wants something done, it usually gets done – especially when all that’s being asked for is a vote. So, when a Governor who prides himself on ‘Getting Stuff Done’ allows this issue to languish year after year, it becomes impossible to ignore the question: Why the indifference? What changed?” Wachob wrote.
Republicans in the state Senate opposed opening a two-year window through traditional legislation because they believed that it would violate provisions in the Pennsylvania Constitution that prevent retroactive punishment. Republicans have preferred enacting the measure as an amendment to the state constitution for legality reasons, which would be sent to voters for consideration.
In 2019, state lawmakers advanced a constitutional amendment to open a two-year window, intending to place it before voters in 2021. The question never made it to voters because the Department of State, under former Democratic Governor Tom Wolf, failed to properly advertise the proposed amendment.
Advocates and former lawmakers alike continue to place the responsibility on Governor Shapiro to prioritize the issue.
