ILLINOIS
CBS Chicago
CHICAGO (CBS) — Pointing to former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert’s admission he molested boys decades ago when he was a teacher and wrestling coach, Illinois lawmakers have passed legislation to do away with the statute of limitations on child sex crimes, and Gov. Bruce Rauner has vowed to sign it.
Hastert is serving a 15-month prison term for violating banking laws to cover up hush money payments to one of his victims. At his sentencing, he admitted to sexually abusing boys when he was a teacher at Yorkville High School. However, prosecutors were not able to charge him with sex abuse, because his crimes did not come to light until after the statute of limitations had passed.
One of his victims, Scott Cross, testified at an Illinois Senate hearing last year, urging lawmakers to eliminate the statute of limitations on child sex crimes. Cross was only 17 when he was abused by Hastert in the 1970s.
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