Santo Domingo.– The President of the Senate, Ricardo de los Santos, affirmed that the proposed modification to article 141 of the Penal Code will not affect the paragraph that establishes a special statute of limitations for crimes committed against children, adolescents, and vulnerable persons.
De los Santos explained that the only change contemplated in said article consists of eliminating the expression “major prison” from the main part of the text, because, as he indicated, the statute of limitations and the conviction are different legal concepts.
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“Regarding article 141, only one modification will be made to the main section to remove the term ‘major prison’ from it, because it speaks of statute of limitations, and statute of limitations and conviction are totally different,” the legislator stated.
The President of the Senate indicated that the paragraph of article 141 will not be modified and highlighted that the proposal maintains a differentiated statute of limitations depending on the condition of the victim.
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He explained that, when a rape is committed against an adult, the statute of limitations established is 20 years from the commission of the act, while, in cases where the victim is a child, adolescent, or a vulnerable person, the period will be 30 years counted from the time they reach the age of majority.
De los Santos attributed the controversy generated around the issue to a confusion that arose because the paragraph protecting minors does not appear within the proposed modifications.
“What is not in the modification project is clearly not going to be modified, that is to say, that paragraph is not up for discussion,” he stated.
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The legislator called on the public and those who express opinions on the project to review the content of the initiative before taking positions, in order to avoid incorrect interpretations regarding the changes being discussed in the Penal Code.
