In some situations, the statute of limitations may not automatically start following the commission of the crime. The statute of limitations may not run if any of the following are true:
- The defendant is not a Georgia resident
- The perpetrator’s identity is unknown
- The crime has not been identified
- The perpetrator was a government official who committed theft by conversion of property
- The perpetrator was a guardian who committed theft by conversion of property of their ward
- COVID-19 judicial orders extended the statute of limitations
Furthermore, if the victim was 65 years of age or older at the time of the crime, the statute of limitations is 15 years and begins when the crime is reported or discovered.
Prosecutors have an additional 6 months if they have already started a case but paused it.
If DNA evidence confirms the identity of the perpetrator of a crime of armed robbery, kidnapping, rape, aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, or aggravated sexual battery, there is no time limit.