554 P.3d 355
Utah Ct. App.2024Background
- John Thomas Winter was accused of sexually abusing his young cousin, Sarah, between 1988 and 1990.
- The abuse was not reported to law enforcement until 2019, although Sarah had told family members previously.
- In 2019, Winter was charged with sodomy on a child and related offenses. He pled no contest to one count (sodomy on a child), reserving the right to appeal the statute of limitations issue.
- The Utah Legislature had amended and effectively extended/eliminated the statute of limitations for sodomy on a child multiple times since the alleged acts, each before the prior limitations period had run.
- Winter moved to dismiss, arguing the amendments could not retroactively revive charges against him, citing statute and due process grounds. The district court rejected these arguments.
- Winter appealed, asserting both statutory and due process errors in the district court's refusal to dismiss the charges as time-barred.
Issues
| Issue | Winter's Argument | State's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retroactive Application of Amended Statute of Limitations | Amendments can't apply retroactively without express language; prior shorter limitation should control. | Amendments apply because at no point did limitations period actually expire before each change; statutes are procedural. | Not preserved; even if considered, precedent allows such retroactive application where defense had not accrued. |
| Due Process Violation | Applying amended/extinct limitations period violated due process by removing a defense he should have had under original law. | No due process violation because Winter never gained a vested right in a limitations defense (period never ran before each amendment). | No due process violation. Amendments valid because limitations never expired before changes. |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Green, 108 P.3d 710 (Utah 2005) (statute of limitations deemed procedural and amendments apply retroactively if limitations never expired)
- State v. Lusk, 37 P.3d 1103 (Utah 2001) (retroactive application of statutes of limitations permitted when defense has not accrued)
- State v. Clark, 251 P.3d 829 (Utah 2011) (procedural statutes apply as of time of procedural event, not as of event giving rise to claim)