Parliament decided: Tougher penalties for sexual crimes against children

The limitation period becomes 35 years

The statute of limitations for sexual offenses and child abuse is increased to 35 years. This was decided by the parliament, adopting in the second reading amendments to the Penal Code. The current term is 20 years. The upper limit of punishments for such crimes is also increased.

The opposition objected to the preservation of the lower – of 2 years, as it allows suspended sentences, and to the increase of the limitation period, as in practice proving guilt after so many years is extremely difficult.

15 years in prison for a man who fornicated with an underage boy

Grozdan Karadzov from “There is such a people” reminded that the Prosecutor’s Office has already stated in the Legal Commission that they will not deal with such a norm.

“Instead of dealing with hollow proposals, inventing some 50-year statute of limitations in which prosecutions can be resumed, let’s raise the lower limits. Then there will really be prevention. Or we just want to create an opportunity here as well to revive this very modern MeToo movement. None of the cases that were seized in this mass campaign resulted in a conviction,” commented Karadzhov.

The court left a man in custody for distributing child pornography

According to the former Minister of Justice Atanas Slavov from PP-DB, it is normal for the statute of limitations for such crimes to be longer and this is the practice imposed in most countries.

“It’s an increased form of protection for the really most vulnerable people in our society – juveniles and juveniles. They need that protection. And the investigating authorities need the necessary time to gather evidence, which is difficult when the crime has been committed back in time,” Slavov pointed out.