New York Legal Blog

Allegations of sexual misconduct have followed R&B star R. Kelly for upwards of 20 years. Kelly, who was married to a 15-year-old girl, is accused of exercising cult-like control over women. Despite all of that, R. Kelly was never convicted of any crimes. Recently, however, Chicago prosecutors leveled 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual misconduct against him. The music icon pled not guilty before being brought into custody a second time for failure to make child support payments.

Although he was acquitted on 14 counts of child pornography back in 2008, he could face an uphill battle in the current climate. Kelly could also face a massive court fight under New York's recently passed Child Victims Act that extends the statute of limitations for survivors to seek justice through civil lawsuits.

Human error and mechanical problems are two of the most common reasons why car accidents occur. For instance, if a driver is under the influence of alcohol, that is generally seen as human error. The same could be true if a driver was in an unfamiliar part of New York state and was distracted looking at street signs. If an individual is traveling too fast for road conditions, that would also be human error.

Mechanical problems could result from a faulty car part or the fact that a person didn't maintain his or her vehicle. For instance, a person who is driving on bald tires may be at fault for an accident that occurs because it isn't safe to use tires without proper tread. The same is true if a person drove a vehicle that had squeaky brakes or other problems that a reasonable car owner would have known to remedy.

     For far too long, child victims of sex abuse have been largely unable to sue their attackers and those that protect them, because of NYS's antiquated statutes of limitations.  As the New York Times pointed out in an editorial published in January of 2018 (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/11/opinion/albany-child-victims-act.html) by the time most victims of child sex abuse are able to report the crime, or think about filing suit, they are barred from doing so by NYS law.

     The reasons for the delays in reporting are many, but mostly center upon the immaturity of the victim.  Immaturity that the predator counts on when choosing their victim.  That immaturity works to impede enforcement of legal rights both in criminal and civil court.  Several states in the U.S. have eliminated this hurdle by allowing a longer time for such victims to seek arrest or sue, and by allowing the opening of a short window to sue, regardless of how long it's been since the assault.  But so far, New York has failed to move in step with other progressive states in the U.S.  That is expected to change.

     Until recently, the only impediment preventing such reforms in NYS was Republican control of the NYS senate.  The Democratically controlled assembly and Governor Cuomo have demonstrated their overwhelming support for "The Child Victims Act", Assembly Bill A05885A, which would allow the reforms.  The bill passed the assembly in May of 2018 by a vote of 130-10, a vote which no doubt included some Republicans.  Sadly, Republicans in control of the senate have refused to even allow a vote on the bill.

     Now that the NYS Senate is also controlled by the Democrats, the bill is expected to come to the floor for a vote, and we are urging its full passage.  It is time for NYS to join the march of progressive legislators around the country and stand up for victims of child sex abuse.

     If you or anyone you know has been the victim of sex abuse, especially a child by a member of the clergy, please contact us at Kelly & Rubin, LLP.

After decades of tough-on-crime laws and mandatory minimum sentences that sent people in New York to prison for years, the First Step Act marks a transition in attitudes toward criminal sentencing guidelines. The bill won approval in the U.S. Senate on a vote of 82 to 12. Although critics call it a "prisoner release bill," the legislation, if it succeeds in becoming law, would provide sentencing relief to people convicted for crack cocaine offenses prior to 2010.

In 2010, the federal government corrected disparities in criminal sentences that required longer sentences for crack cocaine convictions compared to regular cocaine convictions. People convicted before the reform, however, remain in prison under the previous rules. If signed into the law, the First Step Act would grant prisoners convicted on crack cocaine offenses the ability to petition for release.