Push to eliminate NYS Adultery Law
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)---New York’s adultery law goes back to the early 1900s. While isn’t something people often get convicted of, it is a class B misdemeanor on the books.
"People didn’t even realize that adultery was even a crime in New York punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $500 fine," said Assemblymember Charles Lavine.
The assemblyman said now is the time to get rid of this outdated law. In fact, he sponsors legislation that would do just that, and it passed in the Assembly earlier this week.
"We are speaking about criminal law, not matrimonial law," explained Lavine. "There is no reason for consensual intimate activity among consulting adults to be criminal in the law of New York."
The NYS Catholic Conference said, “Adultery is a serious sin, but there are many sins that are not civil crimes. This will seem to fall into that category outside any aggravating factors.”
According to data from the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, since 1979 there have been 10 top charge arrests with 9 occurring before 1993.
"The United Nations special report issued very recently, that these crimes on a worldwide basis and on a national basis as well, stigmatize and victimize women because in point of fact, it’s primarily women who are prosecuted for this needless crime," said the assemblyman.
When asked how his wife feels about the bill, Lavine responded, "My wife is an enlightened modern person, and she believes there is no reason to have laws that made no sense on our books at all. My wife is also fierce advocate for women’s rights."
The bill has yet to pass in the state senate, but Lavine is optimistic that it will.