HELENA — Montana’s attorney general is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider a 2003 ruling that says it’s unconstitutional to bring new charges after a state’s statute of limitations for the crime has expired.
Attorney General Tim Fox said Wednesday a man whose DNA matched evidence left after the rape of an 8-year-old Billings girl should still be brought to justice, even if the match wasn’t made for nearly three decades.
Fox is appealing a Montana Supreme Court ruling which cites the 2003 decision in dismissing charges against Ronald Dwight Tipton for the 1987 rape.
Montana lawmakers have extended the statues of limitations that apply to sex crimes against children several times. In 2007, the Legislature passed a law saying suspects could be prosecuted within a year of a conclusive DNA match.