Re: NYS Child Victims Act; Safe Horizon event, week of January 27, 2020
Ok. Thanks. Geoff
On Dec 27, 2019, at 5:21 PM, > wrote:
It seems unlikely that any political activity—in the sense of advocating for or against a candidate for political office—would take place at such an event. Nor does the event sound like it would be a problem from the perspective of publicity that could negatively impact any additional charges that we might bring in the ongoing Epstein-related investigation, but Geoff would have a better sense of that than me. Absent any further input, I'll run this by EOUSA GCO.
From:
Sent: Friday, December 27, 2019 4:58 PM
To: >; Berman, Geoffrey (USANYS) <
Cc: >
Subject: NYS Child Victims Act; Safe Horizon event, week of January 27, 2020
Michael Polenberg of Safe Horizon is hoping Geoff can participate in a press conference to publicize New York State's Child Victims Act ("CVA"), enacted January 28, 2019. The event would ideally be held during the week of January 27, in observance of the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the CVA.
The plan is to hold the event in Times Square, underneath the giant Clear Channel Outdoor video billboard. According to Clear Channel's website, nearly half a million people visit Times Square daily. In addition to marking the one-year anniversary of the CVA, the purpose would be to advise prospective plaintiffs that the CVA created a one-year window, beginning August 14, 2019, during which any adult survivor of child sexual abuse could file a civil suit against an abuser and/or a negligent institution, regardless of statutes of limitations. By late January, that window will have less than seven months to go.
The exact date of the event is flexible, and depends on Geoff's availability. It also depends on the availability of several of the legislative sponsors of the Act, who were themselves victims of child sex abuse and who appear in the public service announcement that has run to get the word out about the Act and its provisions.
Michael Polenberg said they are contemplating inviting victims of Jeffrey Epstein to participate in the event, but mentioned that he would reconsider if Geoff had reservations about that. Geoff says he neither expects nor wants the right to veto or otherwise influence the event organizers' invite list, and would not want there to be any suggestion that he wouldn't want Epstein victims to participate.
I got no indication that any elected officials would be using the event as a campaign photo op, but I did not specifically ask whether the governor (not up for re-election, if he runs, till 2022) is likely to participate. Safe Horizon and the Act's legislative sponsors are doing an event in Albany, possibly the week before, but again, depending on the availability and schedules of those legislators.
While the CVA is a state statute, the event is thematically about victims of child sex abuse, and would provide an opportunity to publicize the Office's efforts to prosecute child predators federally, and to encourage victims to come
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forward, about Epstein and co-conspirators, and generally.
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