Victims Back New Anti-rape Proposal

SNAP
November 10, 2015

http://www.snapnetwork.org/ca_victims_back_new_anti_rape_proposal

We applaud a California legislator’s move to reform the state’s predator-friendly statute of limitations in sexual violence cases.

[latimes.com]

To us, this bill is about prevention, not justice. If passed, more predators will be exposed and more crimes will be prevented. It’s just that simple.

Every single person who has been sexually traumatized should have his or her “day in court.” Every single offender should be exposed and punished. But even more, every single adult and child in California should be protected from rapists and molesters. If only one man, woman or child avoids decades of devastating pain because of this proposal, it will have all been worth it.

This notion, raised by defense lawyers, of “balancing rights” in rape cases is bunk. The privacy rights of criminals are secondary. The safety rights of kids and adults are primary.

Statutes of limitations are archaic and dangerous. They give people who commit and conceal sexual violence incentives to silence victims, intimidate witnesses, discredit whistleblowers, destroy evidence, fabricate alibis and sometimes flee the area or the country. They enable and encourage more crimes and cover ups. They must be repealed or radically relaxed.

The measure is sponsored by State Sen. Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino).