{"id":25285,"date":"2025-10-03T14:48:36","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T18:48:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/multi.nycnewsnetwork.com\/brooklynbuzz\/justice-delayed-survivors-demand-action-as-city-council-punts-on-intro-1297-vote\/"},"modified":"2025-10-03T14:48:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T18:48:36","slug":"justice-delayed-survivors-demand-action-as-city-council-punts-on-intro-1297-vote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nycnewsnetwork.com\/brooklynbuzz\/justice-delayed-survivors-demand-action-as-city-council-punts-on-intro-1297-vote\/","title":{"rendered":"Justice Delayed? Survivors Demand Action as City Council Punts on Intro. 1297 Vote"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Survivors of sexual abuse, together with advocates and City Council allies, gathered outside City Hall this week to urge swift movement on <\/span><a href='https:\/\/legistar.council.nyc.gov\/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7411818&amp;GUID=B01473E5-9E7F-4D9D-8845-65C340D67F23&amp;Options=ID%7CText%7C&amp;Search=1297'><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Intro. 1297<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a bill designed to enhance protections for those impacted by gender-driven violence.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Survivors Seek Justice After Lawsuit Rejections<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The proposed law is a response to a recent judicial ruling that tossed out hundreds of cases, including many from individuals abused in the city&#8217;s juvenile detention centers. The legislation would also aid victims of <\/span><b>Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> sex trafficking operation and those harmed by medical professionals in prominent institutions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe are not just victims anymore. We are survivors. We will not stop until change happens,\u201d stated <\/span><b>Mary Soto<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, whose own juvenile detention case was dismissed.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking Out Against Injustice<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Multiple survivors shared heartfelt accounts about years of trauma and the difficulty of public disclosure.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Kendu Starmell<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who came from South Carolina, stressed the fundamental right to due process, saying, \u201cAllow us our day in court. Allow us our due process. That\u2019s the minimum we deserve.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another survivor, <\/span><b>Rashawn Jones<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, recounted abuse from a staff member at Horizon Juvenile Center when he was just 16. His lawsuit was also dismissed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cNow that we have spoken up, we\u2019re being told it doesn\u2019t matter. In what world is that justice?\u201d Jones asked.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Goals and Impacts of Intro. 1297<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The central issue is whether organizations can be held liable, not only individual perpetrators. The bill intends to clarify laws and would reopen a one-year window for survivors to bring civil claims, following the model of New York&#8217;s Adult Survivors Act.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThose who put faith in the legal system have now been told they cannot pursue justice from the very entities that failed them. We cannot accept that,\u201d said Queens Council Member <\/span><b>Selvena Brooks-Powers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who introduced the bill.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Calls Increase for Action by Council<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Though Intro. 1297 is backed by 34 Council co-sponsors, Council Speaker <\/span><b>Adrienne Adams<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has not yet set up a hearing or vote. Her spokesperson noted that the legislation, filed in May, is still moving through the legislative procedures.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Council Member <\/span><b>Farah Lewis<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, chair of the Women and Gender Equity Committee, called for prompt attention: \u201cWe must bring this bill to the committee immediately and put it to a vote, because survivors cannot be ignored.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Public Advocate <\/span><b>Jumaane Williams<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> also pressed for urgency: \u201cThere needs to be real accountability. We can\u2019t only focus on the costs or hurdles. The question should be how we ensure this happens.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Survivors of sexual abuse, together with advocates and City Council allies, gathered outside City Hall this week to urge swift movement on Intro. 1297, a bill designed to enhance protections for those impacted by gender-driven violence. Survivors Seek Justice After Lawsuit Rejections The proposed law is a response to a recent judicial ruling that tossed [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5893,"featured_media":25286,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2866],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v23.4 (Yoast SEO v26.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Justice Delayed? 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