The Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette described as a "potentially precedent-setting case" involving sexual abuse by Catholic clergy and alleged cover-ups.

The case was brought by Renee Rice, an Altoona woman who was abused by the Rev. Charles Bodziak several decades ago. Her suit claims the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese systematically covered up abuse by priests including Bodziak, who was named in a 2016 grand jury report.

Other survivors have sued dioceses using the same legal theory, alleging fraud and conspiracy.

The Context: Four years ago, a grand jury report detailed abuse perpetrated by dozens of priests against hundreds of children in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese alone. And in 2018, another grand jury investigation identified 301 "predator priests" at six other state dioceses. 

Using these reports, survivors and their supporters demanded the legislature create a retroactive window for now-adult victims to sue, since both the criminal and civil statute of limitations for many people had passed. But such a measure was blocked by the top Senate Republican, who claimed it would be unconstitutional. 

Now, survivors are looking to the courts for relief. Last year, the state Superior Court said Rice's case could move forward, even though the abuse happened decades ago. The state Supreme Court must now decide if Rice acted too late — a decision that could have wide-reaching implications for other clergy abuse victims. 

“I feel like a lot of the chatter about the Postal Service in the last couple months is intentionally designed to erode confidence in a way that’s totally unwarranted.”

POE MONEY: A handwritten letter in which author Edgar Allan Poe politely pleads for $40 from a Philadelphia editor sold at an online auction this month for $125,125. The letter, however, did not find a home in Pennsylvania.

'MAYOR FOR LIFE': The late Harrisburg Mayor Stephen Reed, once dubbed mayor for life who was later charged with stealing artifacts, will now have his full collection of art and antiques auctioned off. It's quite a list of stuff.

BLAST OFF: Astrobotic, a lunar tech company, has opened its new command center in Pittsburgh. It's on track to send the first commercial lander to the moon.

COVID CAT: A 16-year-old Cumberland County cat is the first in Pennsylvania to be confirmed with the coronavirus. According to the Bucks County Courier Times, the cat lived with multiple people who had contracted the virus. Sadly, the cat had to be euthanized.

WHAT TO READ IF .... You need your ballot! Don't wait. The last thing you want is for your vote to come in too late. The Inquirer has you covered with what you should do if you haven't gotten your mail-in ballot yet.