Madigan Wants To Abolish Statute Of Limitations For Child Sex Crimes
CHICAGO (CBS) -- In the wake of former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert's child sex abuse scandal, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has renewed her call to eliminate the statute of limitations on sex crimes against children.
Hastert was sentenced to 15 months in prison for violating banking laws in an effort to cover up hush money payments to a man he sexually abused decades ago. Hastert was not charged with sexual abuse, because the statute of limitations ran out long before those crimes came to light, but he admitted in his sentencing for the bank crimes that he molested multiple boys when he was a wrestling coach at Yorkville High School, where he taught from the late 1960s to the early 1980s.
Madigan has been seeking to remove the statute of limitations for years, but saw the Hastert case as an opportunity to shine a light on the issue again.
"I think, unfortunately, it sometimes takes a very high-profile incident for people to recognize what a terrible problem exists," Madigan said.
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She said there should be no statute of limitations on child sex crimes, because it often takes victims years to find the courage and support to report them, and sexual predators often prey on children knowing they'll be too ashamed or embarrassed to come forward.
"We want to make sure that, whenever a person can come to terms with what's happened to them, they do want to come forward, they do want to see justice, that they're able to do so, and currently in Illinois the statute of limitations prevents that," she said.
The Hastert case illustrates how child sex abuse victims often are reluctant to tell anyone what happened to them. Scott Cross, one of Hastert's victims, testified at Hastert's sentencing hearing and said he didn't tell his family about the abuse until after Hastert had been indicted for trying to conceal his hush money payments to another victim.
Cross, 53, the brother of former Illinois House Republican Leader Tom Cross, told the Chicago Tribune he hadn't told anyone about the abuse until after the indictment was announced last May.
Tom Cross, 57, was a protégé of Hastert's, and Hastert asked his onetime political ally to write letter of support to the judge ahead of sentencing. Hastert has said he does not remember molesting Scott Cross.
