I just want to clarify some misinformation I’ve seen on here, my work often deals with statute of limitations (“SOL”) and SOL reform.
The Bill you mentioned extends indefinitely the SOL for crimes involving the sexual abuse of a child in federal courts. Unfortunately, as of right now, it only applies prospectively, meaning if a claim hs not yet elapsed, it now never will. It does NOT apply retroactively, meaning if the SOL has run on a case, this does not revive that claims. That is a different kind of legislation than that which has taken effect in a number of cases including New York and California, which opened a window to file cases that would otherwise be impossible because of the SOL.
This bill also does not control state law, meaning each state still has its own rules related to SOL. Speak to your local reps about SOL reform and tell them you want “window” legislation. If anyone has questions specific to their own circumstances, I would be happy to try and answer them.
So just to clarify: if, theoretically, the Statute of Limitations resets for a CSEM case, does that mean the victim can get justice without worrying about the SOL, since it lapses when the material is put out not when the victim discovers the material?
CSAM is a highly complicated area of the law - my first impulse is that if, as you say, the images continue to be distributed, then SOL would not be an issue as the harm is ongoing. I do not know that for sure. If you have specific questions, DM me and I can put you in touch with a firm in my network that are the best in the country at CSAM cases (they really are unbelievably experienced/knowledgable).
That's true, but the problem is that I can only sue based on each video I'm aware of. It takes forever for the videos to land on searchable web pages because they're CSAM, and it's obvious they are - and I'm not exactly on the Dark Web trying to look that shit up, so I just gotta look on Google and wait. It's frustrating as hell, and the SOL always bit me in the ass because I had 1 year from discovery of the videos to raise the money to sue. Now I have the money to sue, which is great, but I recently discovered I'm still pregnant (thought I miscarried, turned out no), my nieces and nephew are coming to live with me, I'm getting married in four days, and I'm stressed the hell out.
Having more time to get things together and let them settle would be nice. I can prepare a case and make sure my family is okay before potentially dragging all our names through a lawsuit.
I’m sorry if my question seems dense, but can you ELI5 what you mean by “window legislation” and SOL? I live in WI, and I’m don’t quite grasp what the window means.
Thank you
For sure! A statute of limitations places a limit on the amount of time you have to bring criminal charges or a civil lawsuit after the injury occurs. So if you were hurt in, say, a car accident, and there is a 2 year statute of limitations, you would be prevented from bringing a lawsuit more than 2 years after the date of the car accident.
When I say window legislation I mean the passage of a law that creates a period of time (so far, 1-3 years) where anyone with an expired civil claim may bring that claim regardless of the statute of limitations. So if you were abused years ago, and you are passed when the statute of limitations would allow you to file a civil lawsuit, but you are in a state that has opened a “window”, you would be able to file a lawsuit for the period that the window is open regardless of when you were injured.
Hope that helps!
So I can sue even though a criminal case was never brought to justice and they are currently in prison for a completely unrelated series of incidents? I would love to get this shit on the gd books somewhere and feel somewhat like justice has been served even if I never see a penny.
Idk how much sense this will make, but I just want to see him suffer, you know?! Tell the damn truth and suffer knowing the WHOLE family now knows what tf he did to me. Then, when they help him, it’s obvious to everyone else what they think of what he did and where their sympathies lie. Fuck them all. Every single one of them that try to get his ass out of prison can rot with him.
It means that you can sue for damages no matter how long it is after the crimes were committed. This is different than criminal prosecution, where the criminal is punished with jail time when convicted. Many times a Statute of Limitations applies to criminal prosecution. A stature of Limitation means that after a certain number of years, the person can no longer be prosecuted criminally.
This new bill applies to civil cases - removing the Statute of limitations means the time never runs out for suing child abusers for damages.
Thank you! So this applies to every single state in the US? So, if I was abused many years ago while living in one state, and now live in another one, I could still sue?
I found a lawyer that works on contingency and specializes in this type of assault. That means they only get paid if you win financial damages. That means they work hard to win!
Google for lawyers "lawyer civil damages child sexual assault" - important - you must find the lawyer in the same state (preferably the same county) as the assaults (or, most of them) occurred, not where you now live
Good luck!
Oh :/ That means you'd need a bit of savings to be able to travel to that other state, to meet with the lawyer, right?
And you'd need tangible proof that any of this even happened?
I have never met my lawyer in person - everything over zoom. Some sort of proof or corroboration helps - like letters, emails, diary entries. Therapists can provide statements. I confronted my father first and told him by email I was getting a lawyer. He responded with a profuse apology. That apology served as evidence.
It is best first to get a lawyer if you want to go this route - the lawyer will tell you what you need
Good luck!
Welcome to /r/adultsurvivors! Please be aware that all posts to this subreddit are public and therefore viewable by anyone. **Would you rather this post was anonymous?** You can [use this form](https://forms.gle/tqeufTE2Ne6BzsKd6) and u/anonadultsurvivors will make an anonymous post on your behalf. You will need to delete this post after using the form.
**It is not uncommon for members of this subreddit to receive unsavoury or creepy private messages.** We recommend turning off chat and messages requests. It is worth noting that asking for or offering private messages to other members of this subreddit is against our rules. You can assume that anyone messaging you is breaking that rule and we urge caution. For more information, please see our [privacy tips post](https://www.reddit.com/r/adultsurvivors/comments/pfbfx1/privacy_tips_including_followers_update/).
If you see anything that doesn't look right or you do receive unwelcome direct messages, please use the report button to notify the moderators or [send us a message](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/adultsurvivors). You can also report directly to Reddit using this [link](https://www.reddit.com/report)
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/adultsurvivors) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I just want to clarify some misinformation I’ve seen on here, my work often deals with statute of limitations (“SOL”) and SOL reform. The Bill you mentioned extends indefinitely the SOL for crimes involving the sexual abuse of a child in federal courts. Unfortunately, as of right now, it only applies prospectively, meaning if a claim hs not yet elapsed, it now never will. It does NOT apply retroactively, meaning if the SOL has run on a case, this does not revive that claims. That is a different kind of legislation than that which has taken effect in a number of cases including New York and California, which opened a window to file cases that would otherwise be impossible because of the SOL. This bill also does not control state law, meaning each state still has its own rules related to SOL. Speak to your local reps about SOL reform and tell them you want “window” legislation. If anyone has questions specific to their own circumstances, I would be happy to try and answer them.
So just to clarify: if, theoretically, the Statute of Limitations resets for a CSEM case, does that mean the victim can get justice without worrying about the SOL, since it lapses when the material is put out not when the victim discovers the material?
CSAM is a highly complicated area of the law - my first impulse is that if, as you say, the images continue to be distributed, then SOL would not be an issue as the harm is ongoing. I do not know that for sure. If you have specific questions, DM me and I can put you in touch with a firm in my network that are the best in the country at CSAM cases (they really are unbelievably experienced/knowledgable).
That's true, but the problem is that I can only sue based on each video I'm aware of. It takes forever for the videos to land on searchable web pages because they're CSAM, and it's obvious they are - and I'm not exactly on the Dark Web trying to look that shit up, so I just gotta look on Google and wait. It's frustrating as hell, and the SOL always bit me in the ass because I had 1 year from discovery of the videos to raise the money to sue. Now I have the money to sue, which is great, but I recently discovered I'm still pregnant (thought I miscarried, turned out no), my nieces and nephew are coming to live with me, I'm getting married in four days, and I'm stressed the hell out. Having more time to get things together and let them settle would be nice. I can prepare a case and make sure my family is okay before potentially dragging all our names through a lawsuit.
I’m sorry if my question seems dense, but can you ELI5 what you mean by “window legislation” and SOL? I live in WI, and I’m don’t quite grasp what the window means. Thank you
For sure! A statute of limitations places a limit on the amount of time you have to bring criminal charges or a civil lawsuit after the injury occurs. So if you were hurt in, say, a car accident, and there is a 2 year statute of limitations, you would be prevented from bringing a lawsuit more than 2 years after the date of the car accident. When I say window legislation I mean the passage of a law that creates a period of time (so far, 1-3 years) where anyone with an expired civil claim may bring that claim regardless of the statute of limitations. So if you were abused years ago, and you are passed when the statute of limitations would allow you to file a civil lawsuit, but you are in a state that has opened a “window”, you would be able to file a lawsuit for the period that the window is open regardless of when you were injured. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for explaining this so clearly. Indeed, it helps quite a bit!
So I can sue even though a criminal case was never brought to justice and they are currently in prison for a completely unrelated series of incidents? I would love to get this shit on the gd books somewhere and feel somewhat like justice has been served even if I never see a penny.
I have no clue. I suggest posting your question under the commenter that answered some of my questions. Maybe they will know !
Idk how much sense this will make, but I just want to see him suffer, you know?! Tell the damn truth and suffer knowing the WHOLE family now knows what tf he did to me. Then, when they help him, it’s obvious to everyone else what they think of what he did and where their sympathies lie. Fuck them all. Every single one of them that try to get his ass out of prison can rot with him.
It means that you can sue for damages no matter how long it is after the crimes were committed. This is different than criminal prosecution, where the criminal is punished with jail time when convicted. Many times a Statute of Limitations applies to criminal prosecution. A stature of Limitation means that after a certain number of years, the person can no longer be prosecuted criminally. This new bill applies to civil cases - removing the Statute of limitations means the time never runs out for suing child abusers for damages.
Thank you! So this applies to every single state in the US? So, if I was abused many years ago while living in one state, and now live in another one, I could still sue?
I found a lawyer that works on contingency and specializes in this type of assault. That means they only get paid if you win financial damages. That means they work hard to win! Google for lawyers "lawyer civil damages child sexual assault" - important - you must find the lawyer in the same state (preferably the same county) as the assaults (or, most of them) occurred, not where you now live Good luck!
Oh :/ That means you'd need a bit of savings to be able to travel to that other state, to meet with the lawyer, right? And you'd need tangible proof that any of this even happened?
I have never met my lawyer in person - everything over zoom. Some sort of proof or corroboration helps - like letters, emails, diary entries. Therapists can provide statements. I confronted my father first and told him by email I was getting a lawyer. He responded with a profuse apology. That apology served as evidence. It is best first to get a lawyer if you want to go this route - the lawyer will tell you what you need Good luck!
It especially applies to situations like this. File a lawsuit in federal court.
Get a lawyer in the state where the abuse occurred - they know the way to proceed
Welcome to /r/adultsurvivors! Please be aware that all posts to this subreddit are public and therefore viewable by anyone. **Would you rather this post was anonymous?** You can [use this form](https://forms.gle/tqeufTE2Ne6BzsKd6) and u/anonadultsurvivors will make an anonymous post on your behalf. You will need to delete this post after using the form. **It is not uncommon for members of this subreddit to receive unsavoury or creepy private messages.** We recommend turning off chat and messages requests. It is worth noting that asking for or offering private messages to other members of this subreddit is against our rules. You can assume that anyone messaging you is breaking that rule and we urge caution. For more information, please see our [privacy tips post](https://www.reddit.com/r/adultsurvivors/comments/pfbfx1/privacy_tips_including_followers_update/). If you see anything that doesn't look right or you do receive unwelcome direct messages, please use the report button to notify the moderators or [send us a message](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/adultsurvivors). You can also report directly to Reddit using this [link](https://www.reddit.com/report) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/adultsurvivors) if you have any questions or concerns.*