California court upholds statute of limitations in abuse cases
March 30, 2012
In a 5-2 decision, California’s State Supreme Court has upheld the statute of limitations in child sexual abuse cases. The ruling came after six brothers, alleging that they were abused in the 1970s by a priest who is now deceased, sued the bishop of Oakland.
In 2003, the statute of limitations was lifted for one year in California, leading to a flood of lawsuits against California dioceses.
“Although we are unreservedly sympathetic to the plight of persons who were subjected to childhood sexual abuse, we note that the preexisting limitations period, along with the one-year revival period ... afforded victims a very considerable time following the abuse in which to come to maturity, or even middle age, and discover the claim,” Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye wrote in her opinion.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
Further information:
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
