Gov. Mike DeWine is urging state lawmakers to end the time limit on criminal charges for rape and sexual assault, which Democrats have been proposing for years. And the leader of the Ohio House said there’s a chance that will happen.
A Republican-backed bill would extend the two-year period to file civil lawsuits related to sexual misconduct by doctors at land-grant universities between 1978 and 2000. It is aimed at the alleged victims of the late Ohio State University Dr. Richard Strauss.
But Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder said he’s talked to the sponsor about DeWine’s call to eliminate or lengthen the time period for criminal charges for sex crimes.
“He’s open to using this bill as a vehicle to be able to broaden it and, hopefully, bring a tougher penalty and an opportunity for this to be addressed,” he said.
Democrats have been arguing for this for four years and tried to amend the so-called Heartbeat Bill six-week abortion ban with that idea, but it was rejected.
