The state Supreme Court Tuesday upheld a Superior Court ruling throwing out 17 child sexual abuse cases against the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on the grounds that they violate the statute of limitations.

"It's a temporary victory for child molesters," said Marie Whitehead, Philadelphia chapter director of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. "We want to eliminate statutes of limitations for criminal child assault."

Whitehead's organization is working with lawmakers in Harrisburg to pass legislation that would omit time limits for criminal lawsuits and provide an allotted period to file civil lawsuits in sex abuse cases.

The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh filed a request with Allegheny County Common Pleas Court in March to dismiss similar cases here.