Lentol announces the signing of the Safe Way Home Act

A5775/S3966 Provides No-Cost Transportation for Victims of Sexual Assault

Assembly Member Joseph R. Lentol (D-North Brooklyn) announced today that a bill he introduced and passed as lead sponsor that will assist victims of sexual assault was signed into law by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. The Safe Way Home Act (Lentol-A5775/Salazar-S3966) provides that sexual assault victims will receive free transportation home from medical facilities where initial services were received.

“A survivor should not worry about finding a safe way home following such a traumatizing experience. Sexual assault is a heinous crime in which a victim’s medical and safety needs are of the utmost importance. The Safe Way Home Act will provide safety and peace of mind by ensuring that survivors will not be burdened with the logistics of or paying for transportation home,” said Lentol.

The Safe Way Home Act was inspired after meeting with Deborah V. Spiroff, a local volunteer victims’ advocate at Wyckoff Hospital Violence Intervention and Treatment Program. Spiroff explained that, following treatment at a hospital or medical facility, a victim of sexual assault was left to figure out their own way home and how to pay for it. In many instances, this meant getting on a bus very late at night or even walking home.

“This bill now closes a vitally important hole in the process of seeking treatment for sexual assault.  This ensures that a victim/survivor has safe transportation home from the hospital. Now, survivors no longer need to worry about how they will safely get home. I thank Governor Cuomo for signing this bill and both Assemblyman Lentol and Senator Salazar for writing and sponsoring this through the legislature,” said Spiroff.

“The Safe Way Home Act is an important measure that will help victims of sexual assault. I thank Deborah Spiroff for highlighting the need for this legislation and Senator Julia Salazar for sponsoring this bill in the Senate. This legislation is the perfect example of community activism coming to fruition. I applaud Governor Cuomo for signing this bill that will go a long way to help survivors of sexual violence,” Lentol added.

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