The state has extended the statute of limitations to initiate civil action for childhood sexual abuse.
Senate Bill 2601, which Gov. Josh Green signed into law this week, gives survivors of sexual abuse at least 32 years after their 18th birthday to bring a civil case to court. The new law extends the deadline for civil action by more than 20 years.
The bill also gives adults five years after discovering a psychological illness was caused by sexual abuse to take civil action, although the statute of limitations defers to whichever situation is longer.
The bill acknowledges that survivors of childhood sexual abuse could have many reasons not to disclose it immediately.
“ If you understand child sexual violence, many of them do not come forward right away for so many different reasons — whether that's family dynamics or the weight of the world is on them to protect their family and their own self-preservation,” said Lynn Costales Matsuoka, the executive director for the Sex Abuse Treatment Center at the Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women and Children.
The bill notes that 60-80% of survivors withhold disclosure of sexual abuse, and the average delay is 20 years.
Some reasons they don’t disclose abuse as children or young adults, as stated in the bill, include their limited capacity to process or express it and the possible psychological trauma it can cause later in life.
It also mentions that those affected often know the offenders and fear retaliation or accusations of lying, and could be worried about the disruption disclosure would have to other family members or friends.
“It is not uncommon for them to delay their disclosure and that's what this bill speaks to. It provides an extended statute of limitations so that these children who will become adults have time to heal, have time to understand what has happened to them and have time to figure out what path they want to take,” Costales Matsuoka said.
The new law is specific to incidents of sexual abuse that take place on or after July 1, but is not retroactive.
Older cases adhere to the state law’s previous language, which gives survivors eight years after their 18th birthday to file a civil suit or three years after discovering an illness was caused by abuse.
