Rally in front of Bonacic’s office
MIDDLETOWN – About a dozen advocates from New Yorkers Against Hidden Predators and sex abuse survivors stood outside State Senator John Bonacic’s Middletown office on Monday to call on Bonacic and the other majority GOP members of the senate to vote for a bill that would create a one-year “window” for previously unaddressed civil claims to be heard in court.
Marcy Hamilton, a co-founder of the New Yorkers Against Hidden Predators, blamed the Republicans, noting that the Democratic governor has placed the measure in his 2018 budget.
“It’s children or predators, and unfortunately Senator Bonacic has been a critical part of blocking this bill until now,” Hamilton said. “We are hoping the force of the MeToo movement and the hope of revealing hidden predators will bring him to the opposite conclusion of where he has been in the past.”
Group co-founder Catherine Robb was sexually assaulted when she was nine.
“When I was finally able to speak publically I was about 46 years old and New York law said, ‘I’m sorry; it’s too late’, Robb said. “So, I was not able to enter into the justice system and find accountability. I was not able to use my voice.”
Rich Tolner is also a survivor.
“Those predators not yet exposed legally will now have the opportunity, from people like myself, who have worked for years, to get these people outed in public to protect our children and our families,” Tolner said.
Another survivor who spoke out was Beth McCabe.
“Senator Bonacic has been real passionate about keeping children safe as they get off a bus. He is supporting to increase the penalties for anyone who passes a school bus. What I would like to say to him is, who protects the kids after they get off the bus?” McCabe said.
Bonacic later released a statement saying in 2006, the legislature tried to address some of the concerns by passing legislation for specific crimes of a sexual nature to have no criminal statute of limitations – specifically first-degree rape, first-degree criminal sexual act, first-degree aggravated sexual abuse, first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child; predatory sexual assault and predatory sexual assault against a child.
“Because this bill has a one-year civil window which allows any claim to be brought, no matter how old, is the main reason why we have a hard time moving forward on the bill,” Bonacic said.
