Pictured: Assemblywoman Amy Paulin

Note: Assembly Member Amy Paulin has served the 88th New York State Assembly District (Scarsdale, Edgemont, Eastchester, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, Pelham, Pelham Manor, and parts of New Rochelle and White Plains) since 2001

By Assemblywoman Amy Paulin

Oct. 6, 2026: The allegations in the Cornell case are harrowing, and the questions about how Jane Doe was failed by the system are deeply troubling. She deserves answers and she deserves justice.

I thank Governor Hochul for acting decisively by appointing Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor. Faith in the local investigation has been lost. The Governor met this moment with leadership. I also want to recognize my constituent, former Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah, who laid out the failures in how the case was handled and urged the appointment of a special prosecutor. Her experience and clarity helped move this forward.

This case also exposes a gap in our law that we have the power to close. As a cosponsor of Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz's bill, A.101/S.10632, I believe that someone who is too intoxicated to consent should be protected, regardless of how they became intoxicated. Today, a survivor's decision to have a drink can make a case difficult or impossible to prosecute. That is wrong, and it tells survivors that the law is more concerned with their choices than with the heinous conduct of the person who harmed them.

I was recently appointed by Speaker Carl Heastie to the working group he formed to address New York's sexual assault laws. As part of that group, I will work to close this loophole.

Justice shouldn't depend on whether a survivor had a drink.  It should ask whether the evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt that someone preyed on her.  I intend to work for a bill that does just that.