Senator James Skoufis (D-Hudson Valley) and Assemblymember Chris Burdick (D-Westchester) announced that their bill (S.9447/A.7079) to expand the definition of sexual conduct against a child has been signed into law. This legislation clarifies that the insertion of a finger into a victim’s private parts—when this individual is incapable of consent due to physical helplessness or being statutorily underage—should be prosecuted in the same manner as when a ‘foreign object’ is inserted.
The Senator’s office was first contacted in 2020 by a Hudson Valley resident whose daughter was attempting to bring her abuser to justice. Her case was faltering due to a loophole in the state’s penal code that did not consider insertion of a finger to be equivalent to insertion of a foreign object. Senator Skoufis and Assemblymember Burdick worked with this family to introduce legislation that would expand the crime of aggravated sexual abuse in the third degree, and offer justice for countless victims.
“These disgraceful acts are a heartbreaking reality for some in our communities, and this necessary change to our penal code will give victims their day in court,” said Senator Skoufis. “As lawmakers, we must do everything within our power to protect the most vulnerable among us from harm. I am grateful to the family for coming forward and to Assemblyman Burdick for his partnership on this important issue.”
“Last year, a constituent bravely came to me to recount the horrible sexual assault on his daughter years ago, who was eight years old at the time,” said Assemblymember Burdick. “The crime was undiscovered for many years, and the statute of limitations had run out. Furthermore, the crime in question was not explicitly defined in the crime of sexual conduct against a child in the third degree. While this bill will not change what occurred, it hopefully will provide some closure and peace for the victim of that assault and her parents, as well as justice for future victims. My thanks to Senator Skoufis for his leadership in getting this bill passed in the Senate and to Governor Hochul for signing it into law.”
Skoufis was also a co-sponsor of the landmark 2019 legislation known as the Child Victims Act, expanding statutes of limitations and creating a lookback window to allow justice for past and future survivors of child sexual abuse.