Local News for Thursday, February 9, 2023

Ithaca Man Receives $5 Million Child Abuse Settlement

An Ithaca man has received a $5 million judgment in a civil case filed under the Child Victims Act. The 2019 law allows victims of child sexual abuse to file civil suits against people or institutions responsible for the abuse. The Ithaca Voice didn’t identify the man to protect his privacy but reported the case was filed in Broome County where the abuse took place. The man was abused by a family member when he was just 5 years old. He said the abuse contributed to his alcoholism and other problems in his life over decades after the abuse ended. 

State Law Could Ban Student Restraint in Schools

A proposed state bill would restrict the use of some forms of restraint and isolation in New York’s public schools. According to the Times Union, the law would explicitly ban chemical restraints and mechanical restraints that hold students on their backs and limit the use of restraint to situations where the student could harm themselves or others. Current law allows the use of restraint to protect school property. An investigation by the Albany Times Union found that some schools use restraint more than a thousand times in a month. 

Bibbie Named Tompkins Poet Laureate

Tuesday night the Tompkins County Legislature appointed Janie E. Bibbie as the County’s eleventh Poet Laureate. Bibbie is a deaconess and trustee at the Calvary Baptist Church in Ithaca. She’s the author of “Alzheimer’s Up Close and Personal” as well as twelve volumes of poetry, including “Pieces of Life: Poems from Smooth and Broken Places.” She says she’s “honored to have the opportunity to encourage members of our community to join me in reading, writing, and sharing poetry.”