New York's legislature will be considering 'Errin Merryn's Law, which would require schools to teach sex abuse prevention to K-8th graders in all public schools. .
State Senator Dave Valesky (D-Oneida) is one of the sponsors, and he had planned to propose the bill even before the Penn State, and Bernie Fine stories became headline news. Valesky agrees there's a fine line, in what exactly is taught, but he points out that we do 'stranger danger' now, and this would be another step in keeping children safe. He says the cost to alter existing programs would be minimal, and would not only educate children, but also help catch perpetrators.
The bill is named Errin Merryn, after a sex abuse survivor who's now advocating against abuse on a national level. If passed, New York would be the third to enact the law (Missouri and Illinois have already enacted it). The bill will be formally introduced when the State Senate goes back into session, January 4th. Read the legislation on Sen. Valesky's website.
