In Maryland, 11 state lawmakers have asked Montgomery County law enforcement officials to investigate the 36-year-old sexual assault allegations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh that have gripped the nation.
Kavanaugh was nominated by President Donald Trump to fill a vacancy on the US Supreme Court. He has been accused by Christine Blasey Ford of attacking her when both were teenagers in Montgomery County in the early 1980s. Kavanaugh and Ford testified at a Senate hearing Thursday, at which he again denied the allegations.
On Friday, senators agreed to delay a vote on his nomination for up to a week while the FBI investigates.
And in a letter dated Friday, Montgomery County Chief of Police J. Thomas Manger and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John J. McCarthy responded to the state legislators’ request that they investigate Ford’s claim, noting that the victim would have to file a complaint in order to trigger an investigation.
“To date, there have been no criminal reports filed with the Montgomery County Department of Police that would lead to the initiation of any criminal investigation related to Judge Kavanaugh,” they wrote.
But even if a complaint was filed, any prosecution would likely be barred by the statute of limitations under the law in the early 1980s. The letter explained: “The law at the time the offense occurred is the law that must be applied to any charges that might be brought. For example, in 1982, assault and attempted rape were both misdemeanors and subject to a one-year statute of limitations.”
The law changed in 1996 to remove a statute of limitations on prosecuting attempted rape.
Law enforcement officials, however, say any victims could still come forward. Montgomery County officials “stand ready to investigate any sexual assault allegation from any victim where the incident occurred in our jurisdiction.”
Montgomery County Police have repeatedly said they have not received any complaint from any victim associated with Kavanaugh. Maryland State Police told CNN the same thing.
