Note: This article references sexual assault which may be triggering to some readers. Discretion is advised.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
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A month dedicated to empowering victims and raising awareness on the topics surrounding this type of crime.
But what happens when authority fails to respond appropriately?
With the recent controversy surrounding HPD and the suspension of more than 264,000 incident reports, including over 4,000 involving sexual assault, a key factor are statute of limitations.
With statute of limitations, a prosecutor has a set period in which they can bring charges against an individual for a crime.
The purpose of this is to protect the accused from unfair legal action and to preserve evidence.
In general, the statute of limitations for a misdemeanor crime in Texas is two years. This includes cases of simple assault, criminal mischief, or DUI.
For felony crimes, the statute of limitations can range from three, five, seven, 10, and in some cases 20 years.
For example:
5 years: theft, robbery, burglary, kidnapping, injury to an elderly person, endangering a child
7 years: misapplication of fiduciary property, money laundering, bigamy
10 years: sexual assault, forgery, arson, human trafficking
20 years: sexual performance by a child, aggravated kidnapping
In the most extreme cases, there is no statute of limitations.
This includes murder, manslaughter, indecency with a child, or aggravated sexual assault.
As KPRC has been reporting, over 4,000 incident reports involving sexual assault were suspended by HPD.
SEE ALSO: Timeline of Houston Police Department’s mishandling of sexual assault cases
Since these incident reports involve sexual assault, the statute of limitations is 10 years from the date of the offense.
If the victim was a child and the abuse was never reported, the statute of limitations is 20 years after their 18th birthday.
Recently, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner revealed 3,883 of the 4,017 suspended sex assault incident reports had been reviewed.
For some of these, Finner said charges have been filed but did not specify an amount.
If the statute of limitations expires for a sex assault case, the best option for a victim is a civil lawsuit.
Attorney Case Barnett, who has over 18 years of legal experience, says it’s important to hold abusers accountable.
“A civil lawsuit provides a critical opportunity to not only obtain compensation for your injuries but also to hold a perpetrator liable for their crimes,” he said.
A sexual assault survivor who requested we omit her name said she feels disappointed about the handling of cases by HPD.
“Victims should be able to stand against their abusers without fearing they won’t be heard,” she said.
She was sexually assaulted as a young child and says it’s unfair law enforcement treats cases like hers as ‘lesser than’.
“It makes me lose trust in them. These cases cannot be swept under the rug,” she said. “We need justice, and we need it now.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing sexual abuse, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 1-800-656-4673, available 24/7 OR if you are a victim who filed a report with HPD after 2016 and wants information regarding your report you can email HPD at specialvictimsreport@houstonpolice.org or call them at 713-308-1180.