MARYLAND
Washington Post
By Ovetta Wiggins and Josh Hicks April 4
Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles) testified for three straight years before his fellow Maryland lawmakers about how his adoptive father repeatedly raped him, pleading with them to increase the amount of time sexually abused children have to sue their abusers.
And each year that his bill died in committee, Wilson vowed to sponsor it again.
On Tuesday, he was cheered as he joined Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to watch him sign the bill, approved by the legislature, into law. It increases the window of time a victim of child sexual abuse has to file a lawsuit from age 25 to 38.
“I never wanted to share my personal business on this level, but I did it because I thought it would help people,” Wilson said shortly after the bill signing. “I wanted the victims of sexual abuse to know they are not alone and that we care about them.”
Wilson’s bill was one of seven measures signed by Hogan on Tuesday, with a week to go in the annual legislative session.
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