ILLINOIS
WLS
By Sarah Schulte
Thursday, April 28, 2016
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WLS) — On the heels of the Dennis Hastert case, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan wants to eliminate the statute of limitations for people accused of molesting children.
Illinois took a huge step in 2014 when the statute of limitations for sex abuse crimes was partially eliminated. However, Madigan and the victims’ group SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) say the law doesn’t go far enough. They hope the publicity surrounding the Hastert case will push lawmakers to make more changes.
Often, it takes high profile sex abuse cases – such as Roman Catholic priests, Penn State’s Jerry Sandusky and now, Dennis Hastert – to change the law. Two years ago, the statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases in Illinois was abolished, but, not completely.
“You have until your 18th birthday plus 20 years to report, so after your 38th birthday, in most cases you are out of luck,” Madigan said.
Madigan said it is time to lift the conditions attached to the current law and eliminate the statute of limitations for felony child sex abuse cases altogether.
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