The Oklahoma Senate unanimously passed a bill that would increase the statute of limitations on first and second-degree manslaughter.
Currently, prosecutors can file charges for manslaughter up to three years after it happened. The new bill would raise that to 10-years.
Senator Lonnie Paxton, who authored the bill, says suspects in hit and run accidents are one of the main targets of the legislation.
"With pedestrians or with bicyclists is where often times they're and we've heard many times where the driver was never found," Paxton said. "But if they're found after three years, they get away with it. And so this allows prosecutors and law enforcement an opportunity if they discover something down the road, then they still have an opportunity to prosecute somebody."
The bill now moves to the House for approval.
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