NEW YORK
New York Daily News
BY LARRY MCSHANE
If New York’s child sex abuse victims lived across the Hudson River, facing their attackers in court would be a legal right instead of an unending battle.
A New Jersey man filed a lawsuit this month alleging his Spanish teacher at Hightstown High School initiated a sexual relationship when he was 16, during the 1985-86 school year.
“He thought he was in a loving relationship with this woman,” said the alleged victim’s attorney, Robert Fuggi. “He didn’t realize all those years were not love, but sexual assault and rape.”
The man, identified in court papers only as J.D., is now 46. But unlike New York, where victims must file legal action by age 23, New Jersey suspends the statute of limitations if the victim fails to realize both what happened and its continued negative impact on the victim’s life.
Those targeted by adult predators often turn to drugs and alcohol, bury their memories or suffer from ailments like panic attacks, experts say.
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