STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT
AGAINST ADULTS
November 2002
Sexual assault, like most other crimes, is subject to statutes of limitations in many states. These periods of limitation serve to define the time frame within which the State must commence an action for a specific offense. Criminal statutes of limitation are not mandatory therefore state legislatures may change or eliminate these statutes at their discretion. In recent years, many states have eliminated or adopted extensions to their statutes of limitations for cases of sexual assault. The length of the extension varies greatly between states.
Five states have no time limitation for the offense of rape, Alabama, Idaho, Mississippi, North Carolina and Virginia. Nevada has no limitation for sexual assault if a written report has been filed with a law enforcement officer during its period of limitation, which is four years. Several states have no statute of limitations for prosecutions of the most serious forms of sexual assault, regardless of the age of the victim. These include Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Vermont. Other states allow an extension of the statute of limitation period if identity by DNA is established. In 2002 two states, Georgia and Illinois, eliminated its statute of limitation based on DNA while Oklahoma extended its time period.
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