Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan
What is the time limit for charges to be refiled if a case is dismissed without prejudice? and when does the statue of limitations countdown begin?
1 Answer from Attorneys
The statute of limitations clock begins ticking on the day the crime happened. The clock can be paused for several reasons, including when the defendant is incarcerated out-of-state. Generally, the statute of limitations is 6 years after the crime date (meaning that the charging document must be filed in court by then, not that the defendant has been arraigned by then or had a trial by then), but some crimes have longer time limits per their statutes. Criminal sexual conduct has a variable time limit depending on whether the victim was a minor at the time of the crime, or whether identity of the defendant was determined through DNA testing. There is no deadline for charging the crime of murder. When the original charges were dismissed "without prejudice", charges must be refiled within the statute of limitations for those crimes (again, it is generally 6 years post-crime date, but could be longer depending on the specific crime). Dismissing original charges without prejudice does not reset the clock back to 0:00.
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