Assembly Holds March 8 Public Hearing in NYC to Look at Reform of How State Deals with Child Sex Abuse Crimes

February 25, 2013

New York, NY – The years-long campaign to reform the archaic statute of limitations for childhood sexual abuse crimes in New York State is intensifying in 2013.

Assemblywoman Margaret Markey (D-Maspeth) and the New York State Assembly Codes Committee will hold a public hearing on the subject in at the State Office Building. 250 Broadway, in New York City on Friday, March 8, 10:00 a.m., prompted by her new legislation (A1771) that would complete eliminate the criminal and civil statute of limitations for these offenses.

The Assembly Codes Committee, chaired by Brooklyn Assemblyman Joseph Lentol, will hear from law enforcement and criminal justice officers and officials, mental health experts, victims and others who are being asked to testify about why there should be no statutes of limitations on child sex abuse crimes.

“We are particularly interested in hearing about research that clearly demonstrates why so many victims of abuse do not come to grips with the abuse they have suffered until later in life, long after the current law permits them to come forward, and long after their abusers and those who hide them can be identified and punished,” said Assemblywoman Markey.

“There is no limit on what is so often a life-time of suffering and anguish for victims of child sex abuse; likewise, there must be no limit on the ability of victims and society to prosecute abusers and to hold accountable the institutions and organizations who protect and hide them making it possible for pedophiles to continue to prey on new victims,” she added.

Markey first introduced her Child Victims Act legislation eight years ago. That original bill would have added five years to the New York State statute of limitations for child sexual abuse, extending the time for a victim to come forward with allegations of abuse to the age of 28.

Markey said, “I saw how so many victims of abuse were not able to come to grips with what happened to them until they were older, so we thought this modest extension would be a good first step toward a more equitable law. However, after adopting that bill four times in the Assembly since 2006, but failing to see it ever come to the floor of the State Senate, we have had shocking revelations emerge in the U.S. and around the world that clearly demonstrates why adding a few years to the statute of limitations is no longer enough. That is why my new legislation, A1771, now seeks to completely eliminate the criminal and civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse crimes in New York State.”

Cases over the past 18 months alone, she says, show why the current law is not just inadequate but demonstrates that more than a modest extension of statutes of limitations is required, citing incidents that have been reported involving Penn State and Syracuse Universities, the Boy Scouts of America, the Diocese of Philadelphia, the BBC, Poly Prep Day School, Horace Mann School, and Yeshiva University High School.

Markey points out that there are vigorous campaigns underway in many nearby states taking place right now to modernize statutes of limitations for child sexual abuse, including Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. “As we saw in 2011 and again in 2012, fresh examples of outrageous conduct on the part of organizations and institutions in covering up child sexual abuse keep emerging to reinforce the need for this change,” she said.

Markey added: “There is compelling evidence that New York should to act to reform its archaic statutes regarding child sex abuse crimes and my bill will do that, appropriately protecting future generations of children by identifying known predators and providing justice for past victims. As with previous legislation adopted by the Assembly, this new bill also includes a one-year ‘window’ that completely suspends the civil statute of limitations for old crimes in order to make it possible for older victims in these cases to get a measure of justice.”

To get the formal notice of the Assembly Codes Committee hearing call 518-455-4313 or email jenkinsn@assembly.state.ny.us.

For information about the A1771 Child Victims Act legislation, contact Assemblywoman Markey at 518-455-4755, email: markeym@assembly.state.ny.us.

Background and updates about the Child Victims Act are posted at Markey’s New York State Assembly website, http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Margaret-M-Markey/

To obtain a copy of the Child Victims Act, go to the NY State Assembly Website, www.assembly.state.ny.us and locate the Quick Bill Lookup button in the center of the home page and put in the bill number, A1771.

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