Rep. Gwyn Green, D-Golden, has drafted a bill that would extend the deadline for sexual abuse victims to sue, the Rocky Mountain News reports. Green introduced a similar bill last year that would have removed the time limits for victims to sue institutions that covered up abuse. The bill died when it was met with opposition from the Catholic Church, schools and government. Green hasn’t decided when to introduce this year’s bill.
“I wanted pedophiles to know they’re accountable, and I want institutions to know they’re accountable,” she said Monday.
But Green’s draft proposal already has raised concerns by those who believe it might not give victims enough time to sue.
“We need to be smart about what we’re doing so we’ve not handed institutions a way of not facing their responsibilities,” said lobbyist Ted Trimpa, who represents the Sexual Abuse Prevention Network.
Trimpa said he wants to work with Green because she’s “doing this for the right reasons.”
Jeanette DeMelo, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Denver, said the church has heard that a bill would be introduced.
Under current Colorado law, victims have until they are age 24, or within six years of discovering the abuse created problems for them, to file suit.
