Recourse for Brutal Assault Years Ago

[cyberken]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: CA.

I have some inclination to what the answer to this question will be, but I want to be sure. Back when my wife was in Birmingham High School in the San Fernando Valley in California around the mid 80's she was jumped and brutally assaulted while walking home from school and left for dead by a group of known female assailants, who prior to the assault had made verbal threats to her and had indicated she was hated due to her religious beliefs I.E. possible Hate Crime, and that "Your Ass Is Grass" after the bullying and threats were brought to the attention of a clueless administrator who confronted the girls in front of my wife. The assault could have been a gang initiation. She suffered severe physical trauma to the jaw area and pelvis as well as severe emotional pain and has been suffering ever since that day. Her parents were afraid to contact the authorities for fear of retaliation, since one of the girls knew where she lived at the time since she had been an old grade school friend of my wife turned bad and had turned on her.

There was only one innocent witness and his whereabouts are unknown, had it not been for his passing by, my wife being as small as she is 5'2" and petite, they would have continued the merciless beating and killed her for certain. Recently my wife has located one of the assailants on Facebook and has not approached her, we now live in FL. so that would be rather difficult anyhow.

So the $64k question is other than hoping that these monsters get theirs or the ground swallows them alive in an earth quake is there any kind of recourse? I was going to contact the L. A.P.D. hate crimes unit, but after reading about the Statute Of Limitations I figured I would ask here first.
Thanks so much
Ken

[Mr. Knowitall]

Your wife chose not to make a timely police report? Why not?

She can try that now, but the passage of two years makes it much less likely that anything can be done.

[cdwjava]

You are saying this happened in the mid 1980s? If so, you can call and ask the police about it, but I do not see a crime that can be prosecuted so long after the fact.

[Mr. Knowitall]

Where did I get two years from.... The passage of @25 years would pretty much rule out any present recourse.

[cdwjava]

I was wondering the same thing! I just thought I was missing something ... I still haven't had my coffee. I don't feel quite so bad, now.

[cyberken]

She was a minor at the time 13 and was severely traumatized and feared for retaliation that would be for reporting the assault.

Pretty much what I figured, worth a shot though, the same statute of limitation would apply for civil suit as well I take it? Well perhaps the ground will open up under them one day, you never know, as they say what goes around comes around, sooner or later.
Thanks