By: Samantha Breitner, Associate in G&E’s Civil Rights Practice Group As a boy of 12, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano was sexually assaulted by a man near his home. For years, he carried around feelings of shame about what happened to him, as his family never talked about the abuse as Spano grew up. Now, he is [...]
By: Samantha Breitner, Associate in G&E’s Civil Rights Practice Group As the recently-enacted New York Adult Survivors Act takes effect, survivors of sexual abuse have a new one-year window to file their claims. The look-back bill became effective in November 2022, and since then, many claims have already been filed. These include cases against high-profile individuals [...]
By: Samantha Breitner, Associate in G&E’s Civil Rights Practice Group With exciting new beginnings this fall for college students, there is also a sad and documented truth: the period between campus arrival and Thanksgiving presents a heightened risk of sexual assault on campus. This phenomenon is called the “red zone.” Colleges and universities often see a spike [...]
By: Samantha Breitner, Associate in G&E’s Civil Rights Practice Group According to research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, women who experienced sexual violence or workplace sexual assault have a greater risk for developing high blood pressure than women who did not. This correlation is “not widely recognized as a contributor to women’s [...]
By: Samantha Breitner, Associate in G&E’s Civil Rights Practice Group Former Catholic gym teacher Edwin Gaynor’s May 2022 passing has left dozens of his former students in a frustrated quandary. Gaynor was a gym teacher and coach at several Catholic schools and institutions from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. He was a teacher and [...]
