Kevin Parker, a New York state senator from Brooklyn, has claimed that the controversial “Adult Survivors Act” is unconstitutional after a rape lawsuit was filed against him. Parker’s claims come after he supported the law, which was used to allow E. Jean Carroll to file a sexual assault lawsuit against former President Donald Trump nearly 30 years after the alleged assault. Despite lack of proof and a number of inconsistencies surrounding Carroll’s claims, Trump was fined $83.3 million for “defaming” Carroll.
In court records filed this month, Parker formally denied the the rape allegations that have been levied against him. Parker also claimed that the Adult Survivors Act, which allowed the lawsuit against him to proceed, was unconstitutional.
The now-expired act allowed alleged victims to file civil suits against their alleged attackers within a certain window, even if the state’s statute of limitations on the claim had expired.
Parker was accused of sexual assault stemming from an alleged 2004 incident in November 2023. The claim was made just before the window allotted by the act expired.
The Brooklyn senator, along with every other member of the state Senate, voted in favor of the legislation in 2021, the New York Post noted. Parker even stood by the law just after the claim was filed against him in 2021.
“I voted in favor of the [Adult Survivors Act] to ensure all New Yorkers can seek justice and be heard,” Parker wrote in favor of the legislation, which was signed into law by Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul in 2022. The window to file claims expired in 2023.
“These allegations are absolutely untrue. My work and advocacy will continue,” Parker said.
The accusation has been levied by Olga Jean-Baptiste, who has claimed that Parker forcibly grabbed her by her wrists and raped her inside her home while she was doing charity work in Haiti in 2004. Hochul was previously commented on the allegations, calling them “deeply disturbing.”
The Adult Survivors Act is best known for its usage against former President Donald Trump in E. Jean Carroll’s sexual assault lawsuit.
The civil trial has long generated controversy as Caroll has failed to provide any evidence of her claim that she was sexually assaulted by former President Trump in a department store more than 30 years ago. While Trump has never been charged with or found guilty of a crime relating to the matter, a judge ruled that he can be sued for the alleged act.
The jury was not allowed to hear numerous pieces of evidence cited by the Trump campaign, including an interview with Anderson Cooper in which Carroll claimed sexual assault is “sexy.” Her story almost identically matches an episode of Law And Order and once posted a hypothetical about having sex with Trump for money.
Despite the dubious nature of the case, a jury awarded Carroll with $83.3 million in damages.
