For a sexual violence crime against a minor, from what event does the limitation period on prosecution begin to run?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In the practice file for this exercise, we read the paper showing the victim's date of birth, the paper dating the offence, and the charge sheet stating which offence under the Act is alleged, because the provision turns on the victim being a minor and on the kind of crime.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading holds that the limitation period does not run while the victim is a minor: even though the general limitation provisions of the Criminal Procedure Act and the Court Martial Act would otherwise govern, the period begins to run only from the day the minor who suffered the harm attained majority.
Another reading notes that the provision fixes the starting event only; it does not itself define which offences count as a sexual violence crime against a minor, nor what becomes of the period where the victim dies before attaining majority, so those points must be settled from other sources.
Your judgment
If the file does not plainly show which offence was committed against the victim, how could the papers establish that the victim was a minor when the harm occurred?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the provision is amended to change the event from which the period runs, or if a court decides when a given offence is a sexual violence crime against a minor.