NEW LONDON (CT)
The Day
February 12. 2019
By Joe Wojtas
Over the past several years, bills introduced by state legislators to extend or eliminate the state’s rather short statute of limitations for filing charges in sexual assault cases were not approved.
But this year, supporters of the measure hope the recent release by the Archdiocese of Hartford and the Diocese of Norwich of the names of 91 priests who have been credibly accused of sexually assaulting children and teens will not only result in one of the bills becoming law but also eliminating the statute of limitations for filing civil lawsuits.
If both occur, living priests could face criminal charges and the dioceses likely would face a large number of new lawsuits by alleged victims who currently are prohibited from filing lawsuits after their 48th birthday.
One of the new bills has been filed by state Rep. Devin Carney, R-23rd District, who represents Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook and Westbrook.
“I just think it’s the right thing to do,” Carney said Tuesday. “This issue crosses party lines. I know Republicans who are proposing it and I know Democrats who are proposing it. It has bipartisan support.”
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