A New York state senator is pushing back against a law he originally voted for amid his own fight against accusations of rape, arguing now that the law is unconstitutional.
Democratic State Sen. Kevin Parker argued in a court filing earlier this month that the Adult Survivors Act, a law that he voted in favor of, was unconstitutional, according to a report from the New York Post.
Parker’s argument comes as he faces a lawsuit over allegations he raped Olga Jean-Baptiste in 2004 while the two were working together on Haiti relief efforts, accusations that Parker has denied.
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State Senator Kevin Parker speaks while Gov. Kathy Hochul signs bills to strengthen New York’s commitment to clean energy development and energy efficiency, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions at Newlab Headquarters at Brooklyn Navy Yard. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The lawsuit was allowed to move forward thanks to the 2021 Adult Survivors Act, which allowed alleged victims to file civil lawsuits within a certain window of time even if the statute of limitations had run out. The lawsuit against Parker over the 2004 allegations was filed in November 2023, just inside the window created by the law.
The same law was used by E. Jean Carroll in a 2022 lawsuit against former President Trump, whom Carroll claimed had sexually assaulted her in 1995 or 1996, when the two met outside a New York City department store.
Parker, who voted in favor of the since-expired law in 2021, highlighted that vote when the rape lawsuit was filed against him last year, arguing that he “voted in favor” of the law in order to “ensure all New Yorkers can seek justice and be heard.”
“These allegations are absolutely untrue,” Parker said at the time. “My work and advocacy will continue.”
New York State Senator Kevin Parker speaks during a press conference announcing legislation to reform police use of force laws in Manhattan on May 21, 2021 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
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Parker has long been a controversial figure for his apparent temper, the New York Post reported, noting a 2005 misdemeanor assault charge the lawmaker received after punching a New York City traffic officer in the face after the officer wrote him a ticket for double-parking.
In 2009, Parker was arrested and charged with felony criminal mischief and assault after chasing a New York Post photographer and damaging the photographer’s camera and breaking his finger, according to a report from the New York Times.
NY State Sen. Kevin Parker, D- Brooklyn, stands at the podium, flanked by Senate members during a news conference at the Capitol in Albany, New York. Parker has been accused in a lawsuit of raping a woman early in his legislative career when he went to her home to discuss disaster relief efforts for Haiti. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)
He was eventually found guilty of misdemeanor criminal mischief charges and ordered to take anger-management classes, the New York Post report notes.
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Parker is being represented in the case by attorney Lonnie Hart Jr., who did not immediately return a Fox News Digital request for comment. Parker’s office did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
