NEW JERSEY
SOL Reform
Piecing together the details of a decades-old child sexual assault case is a daunting task. The Warren County Prosecutor’s Office is on such a trail right now, having initiated a criminal investigation spurred by allegations made against former Warren County Sheriff Edward Bullockin a civil suit.
The suit, filed by attorney Brad Russo, alleges that Bullock sexually assaulted his client, now in his thirties, in the 1980s — when he was between the ages of 8 and 11, while under the sheriff’s supervision. (The suit does not identify Bullock as a defendant. However, he was the sheriff from 1982 until his resignation in 1991 — within the time frame of the allegations.)
The existence of such claims can’t come as a shock to anyone who has followed Bullock’s criminal history. In an investigation into his behavior in the early 1990s, Bullock admitted he used his authority over boys at Warren Acres, the county’s youth detention center, to cultivate future sex partners, according to state police. Bullock told investigators he had sexual contact with eight boys he met at Warren Acres. He was never charged in connection with those incidents, according to state police, because the boys had been discharged from Warren Acres and were 16 or older, the state’s age of consent. …
There are other legal issues to be sorted out, including adherence to the statute of limitations. While New Jersey has no time limit on criminal prosecutions in cases alleging of child sexual abuse, the standard is different for civil suits. They must be filed within two years after a victim discovers he or she had been injured by the abuse.
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