"We strengthened the Gender-Motivated Violence Act because survivors and advocates made clear that New Yorkers needed a meaningful path to accountability when gender-based violence occurs, including when other systems fail them. But we also knew something else: a law is only as strong as its ability to stand up in court. If a statute is vulnerable to legal attack, survivors do not get justice. They get delays, dismissals, and another round of harm."
"Every Council district, every borough, every political lane united behind one message that survivors deserve access to justice. And the mayor said no, on Christmas Eve. While families were preparing to gather and so many New Yorkers were trying to find a little peace at the end of a hard year, the former Mayor chose that moment to drop a veto that shuts the courthouse door in the face of survivors. It was an act of cowardice."
The mayor vetoed Intro 1297, overturning a unanimously passed City Council bill meant to expand survivors' access to justice. The veto occurred on Christmas Eve and blocked amendments to strengthen the Gender-Motivated Violence Act. The amendments clarified statutory language, improved enforceability, and established an 18-month lookback window for victims to file new claims or revive dismissed ones. The changes aimed to hold institutions that enabled sexual violence accountable and to prevent technical challenges that cause delays, dismissals, and additional harm. Critics contend the veto shuts courthouse doors on survivors and disproportionately harms vulnerable victims.
Read at www.amny.com
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