Cuomo’s Silence Is Deafening As Time Runs Out On Child Sex Abuse Bill

By Lauren Evans

As the state’s legislative session winds to a close, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has yet to announce his support for the Child Victims Act despite his promises to survivors that he’d help get a bill passed this year.

The act, which would extend the restrictive time frame for victims of child sexual abuse to seek justice, recently sailed through the Assembly with a vote of 139 to 7 before stalling, as such bills do, in the state Senate.

Politico reported that Cuomo met with survivors’ advocates last week, but his spokesperson, Rich Azzopardi, remained noncommittal. “All options remain on the table,” Azzopardi said.

But senators in the powerful Independent Democratic Conference have drafted an amended version of the legislation that stands a modest chance of appeasing everyone from abuse survivors to the act’s foes, who face intense pressure from the Catholic Church to oppose it.

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Source: The Village Voice (via The Empire Report)