ILLINOIS
Columbia Chronicle
Former Speaker of the House, Congressman from Illinois and Yorkville High School wrestling coach Dennis Hastert has been convicted of illegally structuring bank withdrawals to pay for the silence of one of his alleged sexual abuse victims, according to an April 8 New York Times article.
Federal investigators discovered that Hastert was withdrawing large sums of money, which were used to pay off a former student. The prosecution identified at least four victims during this case, each claiming Hastert sexually abused them while he coached at Yorkville, according to the New York Times article.
Hastert will receive six months of jail time at most, but his defense attorneys are arguing he should get probation because he recently suffered a stroke, the article states.
Victims have come forward, but Hastert cannot be prosecuted as a sex offender because the criminal statute of limitations has run out under Illinois law.
Unlike 16 other states, Illinois places limits on the length of time sexually assaulted or abused minors have to press charges. The incident must be reported before the victim is 38, according to The National Center for Victims of Crime. Ordinarily, the 20-year period might be enough time for individuals to recover from trauma and file charges, but that might not be the case when the offender is as powerful and immune from prosecution as Hastert was for much of his career.
In cases of sexual abuse or sexual assault not involving a minor, victims have three years to report the abuse and 10 years following the incident to file charges.
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