Child Sexual Abuse and Criminal Statutes of Limitation: A Model for Reform

Many states permit courts to toll criminal statutes of limitation in a child sexual abuse case if the victim is under a minimum age, or if the offender prevents the victim from reporting the abuse. Twenty-four states have no such tolling provision, however, and their state courts have not devised a common law solution to avoid the problem of time-barred prosecutions. This Comment examines child sexual abuse in the context of state criminal law. It concludes that statutes of limitation present a formidable obstacle to the successful prosecution of perpetrators of child sexual abuse, and proposes a model legislative amendment to toll states' criminal statutes of limitation.