Bill eliminating statute of limitations in certain rape cases passes Oklahoma House

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — New laws may soon be passed that would allow rape survivors to get justice years after being assaulted.

A bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations in certain cases is now heading to the Oklahoma Senate after the House passed it.

FOX23 spoke with a rape survivor who has been supporting the bill.

She said this would have helped in a case like hers.

Danielle Tudor was raped in Oregon when she was 17 years old.

The man now infamously known in Oregon as the jogger rapist, Richard Gilmore, was only convicted of one of the eight rapes he confessed to.

A law she is championing here in Oklahoma would have made it so that he would be charged the moment he confessed.

Tudor wanted to save herself for marriage, but back in 1979, she said Gilmore broke into her home, tracked her down and raped her.

It stole her innocence, scarred her and he got away with it.

“Like in my case your offender, even though they are a sociopath, when they are antisocial and narcissistic, there is a part of them that kind of wants to take credit for not being caught for so long,” Tudor said.

Though he admitted to eight total rapes, he was only convicted of one because of the statute of limitations.

He got out of prison in 2022.

This is how brazen she said he was about what happened.

“When he was at the police station and started naming all of us off and described us all in great detail,” Tudor said.

In Oklahoma, right now the statute of limitations for rape of a victim who is at least 18 years old is 12 years.

This bill would remove the statute of limitations if there is DNA evidence collected, like from a rape kit, or if the person confesses to the crime.

Leaving victims more time to come forward, and not only face the person who did it but also go through the legal process.

“Offenders will do that. I have another friend, as soon as the statute of limitations passed, that offender went into law enforcement and wanted to let you know I did commit that crime, but there is nothing you can do about it because the limitations are up,” Tudor said.

The bill also includes expanding the statute of limitations for revenge porn from 12 to 20 years.

The bill has already passed unanimously in the House and is heading back to the Senate.