Florida Senate Bill 130, Sponsored by Senator Stewart, seeks to eliminate the statute of limitations for prosecution of a sexual battery against someone younger than 18.
The amended language reads, “If a victim is younger than 18 years of age at the time the offense was committed, a prosecution for a violation of s. 794.011 may be commenced at any time.”
The new law would not be retroactive.
It’s a free for all with no holds barred. Anyone can be a victim and a defendant now.
Someone really dissected 775.15 for this bill. Since the provisions were already there for any victim under 16 years of age:
“(13)(c) If the offense is a violation of s. 794.011 and the victim was under 16 years of age at the time the offense was committed, a prosecution of the offense may be commenced at any time. ”
And any victim under 18, if it was a first degree felony:
“(13)(b) If the offense is a first degree felony violation of s. 794.011 and the victim was under 18 years of age at the time the offense was committed, a prosecution of the offense may be commenced at any time.”
And if it was a second degree felony, [first degree already covered in (b), but duplicated here], reported within 72 hours:
“(13)(a) If the offense is a first or second degree felony violation of s. 794.011, and the offense is reported within 72 hours after its commission, the prosecution for such offense may be commenced at any time.”
What this bill has done is remove the 72 hour reporting period requirement for a second or third degree felony so 16 & 17 year old victims’ cases can be prosecuted at any time.
Quote” The amended language reads, “If a victim is younger than 18 years of age at the time the offense was committed, a prosecution for a violation of s. 794.011 may be commenced at any time.”
The new law would not be retroactive.”……..
not retroactive? uhm ..what part of anytime is not retro active?
also the statute of limitations is in place for a reason .. every thing should have a statute of limitations to protect against false memories, lost evidence, and bribery.. but of course congress isnt aware of that because following laws doesnt apply to them anyways..
Meaning the offense would have to have been committed after July of 2019. If someone brings a case in 2039 for an offense that took place in 2020, it could be prosecuted.
With such a bill in place, after many years all evidence can be lost and the accused becomes the guilty with no ability for defense. We’ve seen recently such events take place. As we have come to know, in sex offenses, the accused are guilty in nature unless proven innocent…which is becoming more and more difficult to do.
Changes like this really bother me. Statutes of limitation were enacted for good reasons. Memories can change dramatically over time. Things that never actually happened can turn into false memories that become a new reality for a person. Plus it forces the accused to try to defend himself against allegations that he or she has no memory of, against a “victim” that he doesn’t even remember having met before. Unless you have ever been involved with a sexual assault charge, you won’t understand that the only evidence needed to convict you is the testimony of one person who says that you did it. Your only defense is to say, “No, I didn’t do it.” Too often, the juries simply take the side of the sobbing, well coached and well practiced complainant and find the defendant guilty with no corroborating evidence. It also widens the door for false accusations designed to obtain a big payoff in a civil suit. Just expands the season for the modern day witch hunt.
Scary since the state will surely prosecute based only on someone’s affidavit without any physical evidence due to an expanse of time.
Michigan already prosecutes without requiring any evidence..If the “victim of a consensual crime” (yea, oxymoron all by itself) wants to admit they lied,made a mistake, or manipulated the evidence, the truth is not allowed to be used to defend the defendant. .. nothing like stacked decks and kangaroo court justice systems.. better luck finding justice in 3rd world country’s and banana republics..