The findings of a state grand jury investigation into clergy sex abuse in six Roman Catholic Dioceses across Pennsylvania, including that of Harrisburg, are shaping up to be the most damning to date against the Catholic Church, according to one of the biggest advocates for victims of child sex abuse.

State Rep. Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, on Wednesday said the findings out of the grand jury will likely prove to be worse than those out of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.

"It will encapsulate the six remaining dioceses and show a pattern across all of them," Rozzi told PennLive. "There has never been another grand jury like this..in history as far as it pertains to child sex abuse. This is going to be the worst report ever. I think we are going to see a pattern of collusion and hopefully we can do right by the victims here and pass the right legislation that can gain victims justice and close out a chapter in our lives. That's what we are looking for, closure."

Rozzi, who testified before the panel, said the panel is nearing completion of its report. He expects the state attorney general's office to release the findings sometime in either May or June.

State Rep. Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, testified before the grand jury and says the panel's findings are likely to eclipse the findings out of other investigations into Catholic dioceses.

Rozzi doubts the panel will ask for a continuation, which could extend the investigation by as much as 18 months. The panel last year extended its investigation until the end of this month.

He said sources close to the investigation have informed him that the grand jury has been overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information and the number of victims requesting to testify.

"We have victims constantly reaching out that they want to testify and we have put them in contact with the AG's office," Rozzi said. "It wasn't for a lack of victims."

The grand jury, which was impaneled in 2016, has been investigating allegations of sexual abuse by priests in six Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania. In addition to Harrisburg, the panel has been investigating the dioceses of Allentown, Pittsburgh, Greensburg, Erie and Scranton.

On March 20, the Buffalo Diocese released the names of 42 priests who have been accused of sexual misconduct with minors. according to buffalonews.com. Two days later, the Catholic Diocese of Erie said it planned within several weeks to release a list of names of diocesan priests who face similar accusations, according to a story on goerie.com.

Over the years, at least 15 priests who had at one time served in the Harrisburg Diocese have been identified in allegations of child sex abuse - several of which were deemed credible. The diocese comprises 15 counties, including all the counties across central Pennsylvania.

In a written statement, Joe Aponick, spokesman to the Harrisburg Diocese, said the diocese "is and has been cooperating fully with the Office of Attorney General's investigation. We have no further comment at this time."

This latest investigation comes several years after the release of two other grand jury reports in Pennsylvania: that out of the state's largest diocese, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, and the other out of the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.

Investigators in Philadelphia in 2011 found widespread clergy sexual abuse and concealment by church officials. As a result, in addition to the removal of a number of priests deemed unsuitable for the priesthood, the Philadelphia report resulted in the conviction and sentencing of Monsignor William Lynn, the highest-ranking U.S. Catholic Church official convicted in a child sex abuse scandal. He served nearly three years of a three- to six-year sentence when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed his conviction over trial errors. He's currently a free man.

A judge in March 2017 allowed in a ruling for prosecutors to retry Lynn in connection with his handling of sex abuse complaints involving children and priests. Because of an unresolved defense defense appeal, that retrial for Lynn wasn't expected to take place until this year.

Similarly investigators in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese in 2016 released a scathing report on the systemic abuse of thousands of children over decades by priests and church leaders in the diocese.

Rozzi, a survivor of clergy sex abuse who has led the effort to expose predators in the Catholic Church and reform child sex crime laws, said he is waiting for the release of the grand jury findings to propel the latest version of legislation that would reform Pennsylvania's statute of limitations.

Earlier this year, Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson County, moved out of the Senate a bill that would reform the law, but would provide no retroactivity component, which would allow past victims access to justice. Rozzi's House Bill 612 - dubbed the "real deal" - contains the three major components sought by advocates and recommended by the previous grand jury panels: elimination of civil and criminal statute of limitations; and a retroactive window. Scarnati's bill has been tabled since early in the year.

Rozzi said HB 612 will serve as the vehicle to amend the Senate bill.

"At this point we are waiting for the AG to put out the report," Rozzi said.

Jennifer Storm, the state Victim Advocate, sounded hopeful that the impending report will further fortify the efforts to reform state laws that extend legal recourse to victims of past abuse.

"It's going to continue to shed light on the need to eliminate the statute of limitations and give all these victims a voice and access to justice," Storm said. "I'm sure what we will find is that there was horrific, vile and egregious violence perpetrated on children and that those children are not going to be able to seek justice given our very arbitrary statute of limitation.

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Editor's note: Updated with more background on the status of Monsignor William Lynn's retrial and on reports that the Erie Diocese was considering whether to name the priests who were facing allegations of sexual abuse and the Buffalo Diocese publicly identifying 42 priests accused of sexual misconduct.

