08/22/2007

WFSB - Eye Witness News

Rape Victim Wins Decade-Long Fight

WATERBURY, Conn. -- A law was signed Tuesday that eliminates the statute of limitations when prosecuting sexual assault cases.

Gov. Jodi Rell handed over a signed copy of Bill 1,500 to Donna Palomba, who has been fighting for the bill's passage for more than a decade.

"Emotionally I'm on a real high," Palomba said. "This is a wonderful day. It's going to help victims going forward."

Palomba came forward after being brutally raped in her home in the early 1990s. Years later, suspect John Regan was identified by DNA evidence in connection to the case.

Reagan was arrested in connection with an attempted kidnapping in New York in 2004. Police said DNA submitted by Regan following that arrest was matched to Palomba's case. However, the statute of limitations had run out six years earlier.

"It was bittersweet because he couldn't be arrested for the crime he committed and this didn't make sense and that the laws really needed to catch up with the science of DNA," Palomba said.

The law now will allow an arrest when DNA evidence becomes available.

"We now eliminate the statute of limitations on sexual assault crimes that can be prosecuted with DNA technology," said Rell. "That, ladies and gentlemen, is a huge step for Connecticut."

The bill was put to use on Monday when James Ward was arraigned in Danielson Superior Court for a rape he's accused of committing in 1988. (Related Story.)

Palomba said the bill-signing was not only a victory for her, but for all victims of sexual assault.

"No one wants to be a victim, but crime is a reality. So at least they can be confronted in knowing that the perpetrator will be prosecuted," she said.

Palomba said that she has been working on the bill since the attack in 1993. She said her next goal is to ensure that the statute of limitations is retroactive.