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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dozens of people in New York state who were victims of sexual abuse as children
sued institutions including the Roman Catholic Church in New York on Wednesday, the first day a new
law temporarily enabled them to file lawsuits over decades-old crimes.
About 85 people had filed lawsuits against the church in New York by late morning, according to New
York County Supreme Court records. Most of them accuse priests of sexually abusing them as children
and church leaders of covering up the priests' crimes.
The state's landmark Child Victims Act includes a provision that, beginning Wednesday, lifts for one
year a statute of limitations that had barred older complaints and which critics said was too restrictive.
The law is expected to lead to hundreds of lawsuits against churches, schools and youth groups.
The change in the law means people of any age in New York state have a year to file a sexual abuse lawsuit
against an alleged offender. Previously, most victims of childhood sexual abuse only had till the age of 23
to bring criminal charges or to seek damages in civil lawsuits.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, called these limits "antiquated" upon signing the measure into
law in February.
Now if the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York would go after those priests
with the kind of vigor that they went after Epstein and Trump I would applaud them.[/FONT]
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dozens of people in New York state who were victims of sexual abuse as children
sued institutions including the Roman Catholic Church in New York on Wednesday, the first day a new
law temporarily enabled them to file lawsuits over decades-old crimes.
About 85 people had filed lawsuits against the church in New York by late morning, according to New
York County Supreme Court records. Most of them accuse priests of sexually abusing them as children
and church leaders of covering up the priests' crimes.
The state's landmark Child Victims Act includes a provision that, beginning Wednesday, lifts for one
year a statute of limitations that had barred older complaints and which critics said was too restrictive.
The law is expected to lead to hundreds of lawsuits against churches, schools and youth groups.
The change in the law means people of any age in New York state have a year to file a sexual abuse lawsuit
against an alleged offender. Previously, most victims of childhood sexual abuse only had till the age of 23
to bring criminal charges or to seek damages in civil lawsuits.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, called these limits "antiquated" upon signing the measure into
law in February.
Now if the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York would go after those priests
with the kind of vigor that they went after Epstein and Trump I would applaud them.[/FONT]
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