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June 25, 2021Iowa City, Iowa |  By: AP

Priests cannot be charged for old abuse despite new Iowa law


IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - Roman Catholic priests who victimized Iowa children decades ago cannot be prosecuted despite a new law eliminating the statute of limitations for child sex abuse.

The Iowa attorney general's office says the law signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds last month does not apply to cases in which the statute of limitations has already expired.

That means victims of childhood abuse who are currently 33 and older will not be able to have their abusers prosecuted because they missed the prior deadline to report.

They also won't be able to file lawsuits against perpetrators and officials who concealed their abuse because the law didn't change the civil statute of limitations.