LANSING — The Michigan Senate passed a set of bills this week to extend the statute of limitations for civil claims of criminal sexual conduct, potentially allowing survivors to sue for decades.
Those policies would apply to people of all ages — but supporters say they’re targeted toward those who suffered abuse as minors.
“This will give them the opportunity to file that claim, go through the court process and hold their perpetrator accountable,” said Sen. Kevin Hertel, (D) District 12, St. Clair Shores.
Current state law allows for a survivor to bring their damage claim until they turn 28, or, if someone learns later in life they were the victim of criminal sexual conduct, three years after that discovery.
The package would extend that time frame to seven years after the discovery, until the victim turns 42 or to 10 years after the crime, whichever is latest.
“It can take survivors years, if not decades, to even process what happened to them, let alone consider whether or not to pursue justice,” said Emily Bice, a survivor and supporter of the legislation.
The bills — Senate Bills 257-261 — would also establish a one-year period for survivors to bring claims relating to incidents from any time in the past, regardless of the victim’s age.
Another bill in the package would remove some liability protections currently in place for public universities and school districts, allowing survivors to sue those institutions for negligence, or, if they knew about the allegations, not reporting them to the authorities.
“Lead us into a culture of understanding, healing, hope and justice,” said Joseph Bellgowan, a survivor and supporter of the package. “Make it known that the state of Michigan will not protect institutions when they harbor predators. There should be no immunity for any organization or institution that seeks to meant to diminish these crimes.”
The policies would only allow survivors to bring civil claims, not criminal — though those cases could bring new information into public view that could potentially lead to criminal charges.
This isn’t the first time lawmakers have considered the proposals.
The bills passed through the Democratic-controlled Senate last year but weren’t taken up by the Democratic-controlled House.
Current Republican House speaker Matt Hall showed some hesitation on taking up the package, saying he needed to see more on how long claims could be brought.
“That creates a lot of questions, a lot of legal problems, so we’ll look at it,” he said. “I haven’t seen it, but you didn’t see the Democrats move it when they were there, so it must have a lot of problems — but we’ll see.”
The bills would still need to be approved by Hall to reach a vote in the House.
