What is a statute of limitations?
A statute of limitations is like a legal stopwatch that counts down the time to file criminal charges or a civil lawsuit. It is important to know when the clock starts ticking, when the clock stops ticking and whether anything restarts the clock.
What is our goal?
Our goal as an organization is to educate victims and lawmakers and promote public awareness of the varying laws in each state as well as current initiatives related to changes in the statute of limitations law.
States Leading the Fight to Protect Children from Sexual Predators
Hover over any state to see statistics about the estimated number of victims in each state and the current statute of limitation laws. Click on any state in the map to see more detailed information.
Advocating for Public Policy Changes to Hold Abusers—and the Institutions That Harbor them—Accountable
Incentivizing institutions to root out child sexual predators also requires a change in the law. Too often, institutions avoid being held accountable because the restrictive state-level statute of limitation laws prevent victims from getting justice. These narrow limitations let far too many predators off the hook and have actually incentivized institutions to cover up abuse, knowing that after just a few short years the institution can continue to cover up abuse unpunished. This is unconscionable since children suffer lifelong harm from abuse.
Zero Abuse Project advocates for changes to this fatal flaw in our legal system by advocating for legislation that would extend and reopen statutes of limitation at the state level. We are also working at the national level to establish a National Plan that would both stop child sexual abuse and implement policies to meet the needs of the millions of survivors nationwide.
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Am I going to be shunned for speaking out?
There are huge rewards and many risks in coming forward and disclosing in the court system that you are a victim of child sexual abuse coming forward is a huge step on the path to healing for many survivors but for others there are other pathways and no one can determine what is the best pathway for any individual person
What if I can’t afford a lawyer?
it’s not going to cost you anything totalk to a civil attorney and these cases are usually handled on a contingency basis so rather than paying the attorney an hourly fee for his or her time they’ll take a portion of whatever’s recovered in the case they will also pay all of the litigation expenses expert fees filing fees deposition
Will everything about my abuse and my abuser be made public?
Choosing to come forward and file a civil suit is a hard decision. Don’t be afraid that everything from your past is going to be made public, it doesn’t have to be that way. One very important step is finding an attorney that you trust and can really work with. Additionally, that attorney can have you files at John or
Who’s going to believe me?
First of all, I’m going to believe you and there are a lot of survivors who are going to believe you. You’re not alone in this. There are a lot of people who have gone through similar abuses and we all understand and know what it means to not be believed. We are here for you, we’re here to believe
When do I have to decide to file a civil case?
Laws vary state by state but this is what we tell survivors. The best time to come forward is when you are ready because no one can tell you or force you to disclose your abuse until you are ready and until you were healed. So take your time take a deep breath and get the healing you deserve but
