NEW YORK
WAER
By CHRIS BOLT
Public Meeting on Child Victims Act May 21 @ 6:00 pm, CrestHill Suites, East Syracuse.
A bill that would give victims of child sexual assault a window to bring old cases against their abusers is stalled in Albany. A group advocating for the Child Victims Act is raising awareness about the measure in hopes of countering opponents of the bill … and perhaps making New York safer for kids.
Bridie Farrell was a 15-year-old competitive speed skater in Saratoga Springs, when then 33-year-old Olympian Andy Gabel came to town to train. Farrell says the iconic athlete abused here multiple times…and her complaints to Olympic Team officials fell on deaf ears.
He has since admitted an inappropriate relationship and been stripped of membership in the national skating body. But the statute of limitations on such crimes prevents Farrell from bring a criminal or civil suit against Gabel.
Now Farrell is trying to get the Child Victims Act passed to open up cases in which statutes of limitations prevent any action.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.