Hello listeners, thank you for listening.

Today's episode is about sex abuse and about 10 minutes in, someone's going to tell a story

about being abused as a minor.

Between Epstein, Larry Naser, Bill Cosby, the Boy Scouts, the Catholic Church, me too,

I think it's fair to say we have never heard more stories about sexual abuse and assault

than we have in the last few years.

And these are often stories about crimes that were committed many, many years ago.

And when you're dealing with crimes that happened years ago, you're dealing with the statute

of limitations.

There are rules in place preventing victims from bringing a case after X amount of time

has transpired.

But now the country is starting to do something about its statutes of limitations.

So about 15 states have extended or suspended the statute of limitations to allow claims

stretching back decades.

Carrie Baker teaches about gender and the law at Smith College in Massachusetts.

Traditionally, statute of limitations would shut people out if they didn't bring claims

of childhood sexual abuse by a certain age, often in their early 20s.

And now there's a much broader window in many states.

When New Jersey became one of those states this week, what does its law do?

New Jersey passed a law that extends the statute of limitations, allowing people to file

civil suits until they turn 55 years old or seven years after they recognize damage

from abuse.

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