HomeNewsHouse hopeful vows to fight child sex abuse

House hopeful vows to fight child sex abuse

Dave Kralle, the Republican candidate in the 169th Legislative District, is happy with Friday’s guilty verdicts in childhood sexual assault cases that rocked Penn State and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

“Jerry Sandusky and Monsignor William Lynn are heinous criminals, and I am pleased to see that they will do time behind bars,” Kralle said.

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Kralle, who is challenging Democratic Rep. Ed Neilson, started his campaign earlier this year by releasing a five-point plan to combat child sexual abuse. He called last week’s verdicts “rallying calls to Harrisburg to make easier the prosecution of these scumbags.”

The candidate’s plan calls for removing the criminal and civil statutes of limitations for sexual abuse against children; allowing testimony from experts on why alleged victims did not report their abuse immediately; requiring people to report suspected abuse against children to law enforcement, not merely to a superior within their organization; and providing training to people to identify the characteristics of an abuser.

Kralle lost a special election to Neilson on April 24 but won a Republican primary the same day. The seat became vacant when Denny O’Brien joined City Council at the beginning of the year.

The Legislative Reapportionment Commission passed a plan, which needs to be approved by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, that would move the 169th to a fast-growing area of York County.

If that plan passes, the Kralle/Neilson winner would have to challenge a fellow incumbent in 2014 to stay in office. Kralle’s home would be in the 173rd district, currently represented by Democrat Mike McGeehan. Neilson’s home would be in the 174th district, now represented by Democrat John Sabatina Jr.

••

Mike Tomlinson, the Republican candidate in the 5th Senatorial District, vows to visit 150 businesses in a 60-day period that started on June 20.

Tomlinson, who faces Democratic Sen. Mike Stack, got the idea when he joined U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick at a Southampton product development and manufacturing company owned by Pine Valley’s Thomas Krol.

Fitzpatrick is visiting 100 companies in 100 days and joined Tomlinson in a June 10 visit to Krol’s IMET Corporation.

“We need to fully understand the critical issues affecting small businesses and create an environment that promotes the growth and development of the business community,” Tomlinson said.

In other campaign news, Tomlinson recently held a fund-raiser at the Chickie’s & Pete’s on Roosevelt Boulevard. Among those in attendance were ward leaders Tom Matkowski and Matt Wolfe, Realtor Mike Galdi and Tom Stoner, a key operative for U.S. Senate candidate Tom Smith.

Kathy Lombardi, Tomlinson’s campaign manager, sets a busy schedule for the candidate. He has been going door to door with campaign aide Frank Burke and meeting voters at supermarkets, malls, convenience stores and civic association meetings.

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Patrick Murphy has endorsed Kathleen Kane, who defeated him in the Democratic primary for state attorney general.

Murphy, a Parkwood native and former congressman, described the primary as a “family fight.” He praised Kane for her vision and called her “Pennsylvania’s best choice for attorney general.”

Kane will face Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed, who was unopposed in the Republican primary. The little-known Freed won party backing thanks to an endorsement from Gov. Tom Corbett, a former state

attorney general.

A former Lackawanna County assistant district attorney, Kane won 52.8 percent of the vote, beating Murphy almost everywhere outside southeastern Pennsylvania. She received a big boost when former President Bill Clinton endorsed her and made an appearance on her behalf at Upper Moreland High School. Those clips were used for campaign commercials.

Clinton campaigned for Murphy in 2006, when he unseated Fitzpatrick. Murphy would go on to endorse Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination two years later.

Murphy and Kane highlighted their different qualifications for the office during the primary but are now teaming up to try to make Kane the first Democratic attorney general since the post became an elected office in 1980.

“We agree that consumer protection must be the cornerstone of this office and that we must do more to protect children from sexual abuse,” Murphy said. “We need an attorney general who will protect the middle class and defend the rights of every Pennsylvanian, not just those with money or power. So now, we Democrats must come together, beat David Freed and deny Gov. Corbett the attorney general he hand-picked to protect his radical agenda.” ••

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