Why does New York law protect sexual-predator teachers?

New York bans doctors from having sexual relations with patients — but not teachers having sex with students: Want any more proof that teacher-union political power is out of control?That contrast is flagged in a bombshell investigation by independent site The74 that looked at decades of abuse in New York schools.The 2019 Child Victims Act opened a window to file civil claims against abusers and institutions regardless of when the abuse occurred; The74 looked at nearly 2,000 such claims involving schools, more than half of them public schools.The chilling details include multiple cases of schools’ ID’ing an abuser and simply letting him go — allowing him to abuse again at another New York school; some kept it up for decades.Backers of the CVA sold it as allowing (some) justice for past victims, but New York law should aim to better prevent future victims.New York City has paid over $160 million to settle more than 150 Child Victims Act cases, mostly against the Department of Education — with some of the accused still DOE-employed even as the city settled the suit.

A state-by-state analysis by Enough Abuse and Prevent Child Abuse America shows that New York has declined to pass two key child-protection measures.Unlike most states, it doesn’t criminalize teacher sexual misconduct, so any child who’s turned 17 becomes fair game.And it doesn’t require more than basic criminal background checks for potential hires, where other states mandate other standard screening tools to prevent schools from hiring abusers.

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Never miss a story.The state doesn’t even track, collect or report child abuse in schools.And while disciplinary records for doctors, lawyers, and even hairdressers are easily searchable online, teacher misconduct records remain completely shie...