PA: Two Women Sue Altoona-Johnstown Diocese Over Alleged Molestation in the 1970s

Back in March, I posted about a grand jury report detailing the sexual molestation of children in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.  Now two women have filed lawsuits alleging that a priest from the parish abused them in the 1970s.  The grand jury report led to a debate in the legislature about extending the statute of limitations and possibly including a window in which expired cases could be filed.  The state House passed a bill that would retroactively extend the civil statute of limitations (from age 30 to age 50).  The state Senate Judiciary Committee held a meeting last week and heard from five experts on the constitutionality of retroactively altering the statute of limitations.  The Pennsylvania Constitution has arguably been interpreted as more restrictive than the United States Constitution on the issue.  Four of the five experts opined that the bill was unconstitutional.  The women’s lawsuits appear to make a case for extending the statute based on the alleged concealment of the cover-up by the diocese extending through last year.