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	Conlin Abuse Allegations Highlight Debate over Statute of Limitations By Joe Green Gloucester County Times December 22, 2011 http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2011/12/conlin_abuse_allegations_highl.html The four people who say veteran Philly sports writer Bill Conlin sexually assaulted them in the 1970s are far from the only ones to make such claims against someone decades after the abuse allegedly occurred. Conlin’s accusers told their stories to Gloucester County prosecutors last year but found that New Jersey’s statute of limitations won’t allow authorities to charge him criminally. Likewise for any civil lawsuits, so far. A pending state bill would do away with the statute of limitations for civil suits in child sex abuse cases. The bill, whose Senate version is S2405, cleared that house’s Judiciary Committee about a year ago, but it hasn’t gone any further yet. And legislators aren’t necessarily going to rush it. While the bill’s supporters say it could conquer the emotional barriers victims face in coming forward, there are other difficulties. Current law allows alleged victims to file a suit within two years of discovering that there’s a connection between injuries and trauma suffered, and the sexual abuse itself. That time can be extended because of the “plaintiff’s mental state, duress by the defendant,” or other rational reasons. S2405 would erase those limitations and, as Senate sponsors Joseph F. Vitale (D, Woodbridge) and Nicholas P. Scutari (D, Linden) argue, would give victims “full access to the courts” and ease the complexities of determining when trauma was discovered and whether time limits can be extended. To victims, that may signal long-overdue justice. But at least some lawmakers, while not necessarily opposed to the measure, say it’s not so simple. “This is a very emotionally-charged issue, and I think all sides are going to be represented,” said Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney (D, West Deptford). “This is a serious bill,” he said, adding legislators were not going to forget about it. “It’s an issue that isn’t going away, but this also isn’t a bill you just put through,” Sweeney said. He said he and colleagues would have to look over the bill again and consider the consequences. That brings to mind the reasons for statutes of limitations as they are, in any criminal matter. For one, memories can be lost or distorted over long periods of time. And the right of defendants to speedy due process, with other limits on prosecutorial power, come into play as well. In Conlin’s case, the parents of several accusers allegedly knew of the accusations roughly 40 years ago but never reported them to police. It was only when statements were given to Gloucester County authorities that any such report was made. “An exhaustive investigation by the Major Crimes Unit was immediately undertaken,” a statement released Wednesday by the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office said. After that, the release said, “it was determined that pursuit of a criminal prosecution in Gloucester County, if found legally appropriate to do so, was legally barred due to expiration of the statute of limitations...” The statute of limitations for criminal cases of child sexual abuse was actually eliminated in 1996. But that was not retroactive to abuse alleged to have occurred before then. Because the accusations against Conlin date to the 1970s, authorities could not prosecute. As for civil suits, S2405 has gained attention from accusers in other cases. The Newark Star-Ledger on Dec. 16 focused on the bill in reporting that 45-year-old Richard Fitter of Montclair is touting it in trying to bring to justice the priest he says molested him in early 1980s. Fitter’s attorney, Greg Gianforcaro, told the Ledger New Jersey courts make it “very, very difficult, if not impossible” for victims to bring abuse cases to trial, when they must show discovery of an abuse/trauma connection within the current two-year limit. The Gloucester County Times was unable to immediately contact one of Conlin’s accusers, Karen Healey, concerning her thoughts on S2405 and whether she’d consider filing a civil suit should the bill be adopted.
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