Evelyn Yang + Drew Dixon + Gloria Allred to NYS Assembly: You Have 9 Days Left to Pass the Adult Survivors Act

BROOKLYN, NY (05/12/2022) (readMedia)-- With just nine days left of the legislative session, survivors of sexual abuse and Safe Horizon called on the NYS Assembly to pass the Adult Survivors Act (S66-A/A648-A). Two weeks ago, the Senate passed the bill for the second year in a row, with unanimous support.

The press conference can be viewed here.

The pressure is now on the Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie - and Assembly Judiciary Committee Chair Charles D. Lavine - to move the ASA for a floor vote and for the Governor to ultimately sign it into law. A majority of the Judiciary Committee members support the bill and seventy Assembly Members have joined lead sponsor Linda B. Rosenthal to co-sponsor the ASA, including Republicans.

Survivors were joined by famed victims rights attorney Gloria Allred, who represented Rita Pasarell – a co-founder of the Sexual Harassment Working Group – nearly a decade ago in Rita's harassment claims against the Assembly when she was then a staffer for former Assemblymember Vito Lopez.

"Victims of sexual assault are done waiting. We have been brave and fearless, Speaker Heastie. Now, it's your turn. Even as we healed from our profound pain as survivors, we advocated for this important legislation as citizens. We found the will to carry on for years without justice, and we expect you to find the will to carry this bill across the finish line. The eyes of thousands of survivors in New York State are on you and the New York Assembly in this moment. We are watching and waiting, and we unequivocally insist: Pass the Adult Survivors Act now!" said Evelyn Yang and Drew Dixon.

"To put it simply: Countless survivors have been denied the chance to seek justice in the courts. Survivors need time to overcome shame and self-doubt or simply to even be able to recognize or name that they were abused," said Safe Horizon CEO Liz Roberts. "The Adult Survivor's Act will give many survivors that time back. Every survivor deserves the right to seek justice in the way that feels right to them. I urge the Assembly to stand with survivors and pass the Adult Survivor's Act immediately."

"Being able to hold abusers and enabling institutions accountable is part of the bigger picture for women's rights. If you don't support that, then you don't really support women. This is a time to expand rights for women and survivors, not be stuck in the mud with antiquated, patriarchal views of trauma and justice. Speaker Heastie and Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Lavine's refusal to bring the Adult Survivors Act to a vote leaves survivors wondering who they are protecting. Certainly not women's rights. And, If Governor Hochul supports the right to hold abusers accountable, she should speak up now when it matters. It's time for the Assembly to pass the Adult Survivors Act without further delay," said Marissa Hoechstetter.

"I'm calling on the Assembly to show institutional courage and pass the Adult Survivors Act. This is a bi-partisan bill with massive support in the Assembly, and the bill already passed the Senate twice. The Assembly must finally bring the Adult Survivors Act to a vote now," said Rita Pasarell, a co-founder of the Sexual Harassment Working Group.

"New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie has nine session days left to stop standing in the way of justice. The N.Y.S. Senate has already passed the Adult Survivors Act (A.S.A.) twice, two years in a row, by a unanimous vote. We know we have the votes in the New York Assembly Judiciary Committee to send the Adult Survivors Act to the floor, and there are 70 co-sponsors of the bill including Republicans. This is a bi-partisan bill with massive support. The only man in the way appears to be the Assembly Speaker. Speaker Heastie, why will you not allow legislators in the Assembly to vote for the A.S.A. on the floor of the Assembly? Why does the A.S.A. remain bottled up in the Assembly Judiciary Committee? You have the power to release it for a vote on the Assembly floor. Why would you not allow this vote? Why are you denying access to justice for victims of sexual abuse? How many times do survivors have to relive their trauma at a press conference or in front of legislators before you take action? The A.S.A. is the same as the Child Victims Act which the Assembly passed nearly 3 years ago with near unanimous support, except that the A.S.A. would allow a one-year window for Adult Survivors of Adult Sexual Abuse to sue those whom the survivors allege have sexually victimized them. The New York State Assembly has an unfortunate and appalling history of standing in the way of survivors. I wonder if there are some legislators in the Assembly who are concerned that if the A.S.A. becomes law that victims whom they have sexually harassed or sexually assaulted may be able to sue them and have their day in court? Given the appalling history of the Assembly on supporting survivors, I urge you, Speaker Heastie, to reveal the names of all of those working behind the scenes and in the shadows to prevent the A.S.A. from moving forward. I am especially interested in the names of those individuals who have sexually harassed or sexually assaulted women, and who have a stake in stopping the A.S.A. from becoming law, because these wrongdoers do not want to take the risk of being held accountable. Surely survivors should have the right simply to file their cases and have the opportunity to be heard by a judge and a jury in the civil justice system. We urge Speaker Heastie to allow a floor vote on the A.S.A. immediately, and we urge all legislators to pass the Adult Survivors Act now!" said Attorney Gloria Allred, at the press conference.

The ASA would provide a one-year lookback window to time-barred survivors who were abused when they were 18 years old or over. If passed, those survivors would have one year in which to file a civil claim -- no matter how long ago the abuse happened -- even if the statute of limitations has expired. The ASA is based on the Child Victims Act (CVA,) which both extended the criminal & civil statutes of limitations forward and created a one-year lookback window (later extended due to COVID's impact on the courts) to allow time-barred survivors of childhood sexual abuse to sue their abusers & negligent institutions in civil court. Over 10,000 survivors filed civil lawsuits in New York during the two years that the lookback window was open. In 2019, along with the CVA, the Legislature additionally passed legislation that prospectively extended the civil and criminal statute of limitation for certain felony sex offenses including rape in the 2nd and 3rd degree. However, the law does not apply retroactively, meaning that certain survivors who were abused prior to 2019, still have only between 1-5 years to file a civil lawsuit.

About the ASA

The ASA - (A.648-A L. Rosenthal/S.66-A Hoylman) - is the next important step that the New York State legislature must take to reform the State's long-outdated statute of limitations for survivors of sexual violence. Modeled on the Child Victims Act, the ASA would provide a one-year lookback window to survivors who were abused when they were 18 years old or over. If passed, adult survivors would have one year in which to file a civil claim -- no matter how long ago the abuse happened -- even if the statute of limitations has expired.

Recognizing that the constrained time limits in NY's statutes were not in line with what experts understand about trauma, the legislature in 2019 passed the CVA, which has allowed over 10,000 survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file civil lawsuits to date. That same year, the Legislature extended the civil and criminal statute of limitations for several felony offenses -- including extending the civil statute of limitations for Rape in the second and third degrees prospectively up to 20 years. However, the law does not apply retroactively, meaning that certain survivors who were abused prior to 2019, still have only between 1-5 years to file a civil lawsuit.

The ASA applies to Article 130 crimes, including Rape 2 and 3, criminal sex acts, among others and incest offenses in Section 255. Just like the Child Victims Act, the ASA would also waive the 90 day notice of claim requirement to bring a case against a public institution.

The ASA will create new paths to justice for survivors who were denied access to our courts because of an artificially narrow statute of limitations. The bill will give all survivors, including people who were formerly incarcerated, individuals abused by an intimate partner, and disabled survivors, a much needed chance to hold their abusers accountable.