Molly’s Law gives some wrongful death claimants more time to sue

March 24, 2012 was a tragic day for the family of Molly Young, a Carbondale woman who died of a gunshot wound to the head. She was found in the apartment of her boyfriend, Richie Minton. The exact circumstances of her death were never determined.

Molly's father, Larry Young, tried to obtain information related to his daughter's death, but his Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests took a long time to process. By the time he filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Minton, whom Young believes shot his daughter, the two-year statute of limitations had expired. Young's case was dismissed as untimely.

As a result of his experiences trying to obtain information about the investigation into his daughter's death, Young began advocating for legislation changing how FOIA requests are processed and extending the statute of limitations to bring wrongful death actions. The bills, which were introduced in February, unanimously passed the House in April. Governor Rauner signed the bills into law on July 19, 2016.

Find out more about these two new public acts and how they work in the September Illinois Bar Journal.

Posted on September 7, 2016 by Mark S. Mathewson

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