IOWA
KWQC
n the State of Iowa, the statute of limitations on the sexual abuse of a child is a maximum of ten years. It goes into effect once a victim of sexual abuse turns 18; that person has up to ten years to try and prosecute their abuser.
But there is a relatively new, local organization that is advocating for a change in the statute of limitations when it comes to sex abuse against minors.
Abuse victims with the S.A.A.M. Foundation — a nonprofit dedicated to changing the statute of limitations for Sexual Abuse Against Minors — tell KWQC’s Morgan Ottier that it oftentimes takes longer to cope with the years of sexual abuse and to make the decision to come forward and prosecute.
“I am a victim of sexual abuse myself,” said S.A.A.M. co-founder, Natalie Long. She said it started in the early 1980s, when she was just seven, and it went on for four years.
“Back in that time I think it was more of a hidden, let’s shove it under the rug type of thing,” she said.
“I had to seek help on my own in my later twenties.”
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