Understanding the Criminal Justice System
Senate Bill 151, currently under consideration by the Indiana legislature, would eliminate the statute of limitations for two serious sex crimes. The Senate bill was authored, co-authored, or sponsored by 39 of Indiana’s 50 senators and is now with the House’s Committee on Courts and Criminal Code, which, as of this writing, has yet to consider it.
The idea behind the statute of limitations for any crime is that after a certain amount of time has passed, it becomes more difficult to prosecute a defendant for an alleged crime fairly. Memories fade, physical evidence decays, and it becomes harder to locate witnesses who may be able to help exonerate the accused. After some period of time – which can be different for different crimes – society has decided that a person should not be prosecuted for a crime they may have committed years before.
There are, however, some crimes for which there is no statute of limitations, crimes that a defendant can be prosecuted for even if they occurred decades in the past. Murder is a classic example. Society has decided that these crimes are so serious that they can always be prosecuted.
Senate Bill 151 would remove the statute of limitations for certain crimes, including Level 3 Rape and Child Molesting felonies, expanding the current law, which provides no statute of limitations for all Level 1 and Level 2 felonies. This would mean that these crimes can be
prosecuted at any time, even if decades have passed since the alleged crime took place. The bill was originally broader and would have removed the statute of limitations for all sex crimes in Indiana, but was scaled back by the Senate’s Corrections and Criminal Law Committee before being sent to the House.
If Senate Bill 151 becomes law, it would create obvious challenges for defendants accused of Level 3 Rape or Child Molesting felonies that allegedly took place long ago. As noted above, as time passes, people’s memories fade. Witnesses become harder to locate. Evidence that could help exonerate the defendant is lost, destroyed, or corrupted. In short, the chances of an unjust conviction increase substantially as time passes.
When you’re facing serious prison time because of an alleged crime that took place years or decades ago, you need the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney, someone who understands Indiana’s criminal laws and procedures. At Razumich & Associates, we have defended clients accused of serious crimes in courts all across Indiana. We will fight for your rights and aggressively defend you against the charges no matter how long ago the crime allegedly took place. Call Razumich & Associates today at 317-449-8661 or use our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation to discuss your case and learn how we can help.
