Bid to overturn time limit for sexual assault prosecutions
The Teddy Bear Foundation‚ represented by the Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS) at Wits University‚ has been admitted to intervene as amicus curiae in a case involving a sexual offender for offences allegedly committed decades ago, says a TimesLIVE report. The case will be heard at the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) on Monday.
The application aims to challenge a section of law which gives the state a maximum of 20 years to prosecute a sexual assault while there is no such time limit for the crime of rape.
This application was brought by eight individuals who say they were sexually abused as children. ‘We wish to assist the court with this important issue and support the applicants’ position that it is in the public interest for victims of all forms of sexual violence to be able to access justice at any time‚’ Sheena Swemmer‚ attorney at the CALS‚ said. CALS argues that children who are sexually assaulted are ‘most often unable to come to terms with the experience until later in life‚ and they do so in many different forms’.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
