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Photo credit: The Egg Performance Art Theater in Albany, NY, where the alleged sexual abuse occurred. By Nitant23 – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7011145
Lawyers presented arguments before New York’s highest court yesterday, in a case that could have major implications for how survivors of child sexual abuse are required to recall traumatic events when seeking justice. The case, which centers on a lawsuit filed under the state’s Child Victims Act, is being closely watched by advocates who fear it could set a precedent that makes it more difficult for survivors to bring claims forward, ABC News New York reported per the Associated Press.
New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office is asking the Court of Appeals to dismiss the lawsuit of a man who says he was sexually assaulted by multiple men, including state employees, near a state-run theater in Albany between 1986 and 1990, beginning when he was 12 years old. The suit, originally filed in 2021, was made possible by the Child Victims Act, a 2019 law that temporarily removed time restrictions for survivors of child sexual abuse to file civil claims.
A state attorney argued before the court that the lawsuit fails to provide an adequately specific account of the alleged abuse and that the multi-year timeframe is too broad to meet legal standards for suing the state.
“It doesn’t necessarily need to be a specific date, but it should be a very narrow range,” said Jeffrey Lang of the attorney general’s office. “I would say weeks, and here we just have nothing.”
State officials contend that more precise timelines are necessary to properly investigate claims and assess potential liability.
Survivors’ Legal Hurdles and the Impact of Trauma on Memory
Advocates for survivors have pushed back on this argument, emphasizing that victims of child sexual abuse often struggle to recall exact dates due to the psychological trauma associated with their experiences. The plaintiff’s attorney told the court that the man provided all the information he was able to remember when he filed the lawsuit.
“At the time this claim was filed almost four years ago, this was the extent of the information that he knew because of the psychological trauma,” the attorney noted.
The unnamed plaintiff alleges that he was repeatedly raped, molested, and fondled by multiple men around The Egg, a performing arts theater located at the state Capitol complex.
A lower court originally dismissed the lawsuit for lack of specificity, but an appeals court overturned that ruling in November 2023, finding that because the alleged events occurred decades ago when the claimant was a child, the timeframe provided was sufficiently specific.
The case is one of approximately 300 lawsuits filed against the state under the Child Victims Act. The vast majority of the more than 10,800 lawsuits brought under the law targeted private institutions, including churches, hospitals, and schools. This reflects the broader trend that much of the abuse covered under the Act occurred in private institutions, but some survivors are also holding public institutions accountable.
Balancing Victim Advocacy and Legal Defense
The case has drawn scrutiny over Attorney General James’ role in both advocating for victims and defending the state against lawsuits.
A spokesperson for James said in a prepared statement that survivors of child sexual abuse “deserve the opportunity to pursue justice through the process outlined in the Child Victims Act. As New York’s lawyer, we have a responsibility to defend the state, which we are balancing with our strong desire to support survivors and their ability to heal.”
James has argued that the legislature could have set different legal requirements for suing the state when it enacted the law.
Survivors’ advocates fear that if the state prevails, it could set a precedent that complicates pending cases under the Child Victims Act, as well as future cases brought under the Adult Survivors Act, which allowed adult survivors of sexual abuse to file civil lawsuits. More than 1,400 cases have been filed against the state under that law, many alleging abuse within state prisons.
“The state basically is saying, ‘We don’t believe victims. We’re not going to allow these victims to have their day in court,’” said Gary Greenberg, an advocate who helped push for the Child Victims Act.
Albany Law School professor Dale Margolin Cecka noted that James’ duty is to represent the state, and that the appeal is an effort to clarify legal standards for cases filed under the Child Victims Act.
“She can’t go, ‘Well, this seems so bad to me that we’re just not going to personally advocate for our client,’ which is the state of New York,” Cecka said.
