The Federal Parliament's Justice Committee has approved a bill to amend the law on criminal procedures, including significant changes to the statute of limitations for serious crimes.
As it stands, the statute of limitations ranges from six months to 20 years and prevents legal procedures from being initiated when the crime in question occurred before the time specified. The approved bill wants to modify the statute to a one-year minimum and thirty-year maximum, contingent on the minimum and maximum sentence attached to a crime.
In addition, the bill hopes to remove the statute of limitations for severe crimes, including crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes, and sexual offences against minors. This would ensure that a crime can always be prosecuted regardless of how long ago the offence occurred.
The Federal Government also hopes to apply this exception to extreme cases of murder or aggravated theft, based on a bill tabled by former Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne at the end of 2022. This was included in the motion passed on Wednesday.
Tangible impact
The bill would remove impunity for the crimes listed due to the extent of their impact on victims. It would also apply to crimes aiming to undermine the country as a whole. It is anticipated that it may affect the case of the Brabant Killers, Belgium's biggest cold case in which 40 people were murdered but those responsible vanished without a trace.
The proposal may also be significant for sexual abuse victims within the Catholic Church, many of whom are unable to seek legal justice due to the statute of limitations on incidents of assault that occurred years ago.
Speaking to the commission of enquiry into sexual abuse in the Catholic Church on Monday, lawyer and deacon Pierre Bernard called for modifications on the statute of limitations to be applied retroactively. He asked the commission: "Why does a victim of sexual violence from 2019 benefit from the non-applicability of the statute of limitations while a victim of acts dating from 2018 does not?"
