Free Republic

The two women who say they were raped by the Assembly's former chief counsel have sent an unprecedented "open letter" to state lawmakers, urging an end to the "victimization" of female employees. The women, former Assembly staffers, faxed the letter late last week to all 212 lawmakers in the wake of Senate Minority Leader David Paterson's decision to fire his receptionist, Neysha Williams, who complained of harassment — and a nonsexual violent assault — at the hands of Sen. Kevin Parker (D-Brooklyn). "We have come together to address the prevalence of Assembly and Senate employees being victimized by those who...

The news that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is being sued for not stopping his chief counsel from committing rape sounds preposterous on its face — but it's hard not to love the irony. After all, Silver himself is largely to blame for batty suits like this. As counsel to one of the state's top tort law firms, Weitz & Luxenberg, Silver reportedly is paid handsomely — no doubt, to make sure state law is designed with tort lawyers in mind. And in that sense, Silver does not disappoint: New York law lets lawyers make a mint by filing lucrative lawsuits....