BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Friday the Child Victims Act will be included in the 2019 Executive Budget.
The legislation would ensure men and women who abuse children are held accountable criminally and civilly. It also provides a path to justice for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.
"There has been a degradation of justice for childhood sexual assault survivors who have suffered for decades by the authority figures they trusted most. That ends this year with the enactment of the Child Victims Act to provide survivors with a long-overdue path to justice," Governor Cuomo said. "For years Senate Republicans unconscionably blocked passage of this critical bill, but in partnership with a new progressive legislative majority we have an opportunity to ensure perpetrators of these heinous acts are held accountable and that survivors of childhood sexual abuse get their day in court."
Under the current law, offenses cannot be prosecuted after five years from their occurrence and civil lawsuits must be brought within three years from the victim's 18th birthday. The Child Victims Act would ensure perptrators are held accountable regardless of when the crime occured.
