President Donald Trump on Wednesday afternoon signed a bill into law that sets up protections for amateur athletes against sexual assault, HuffPost reported.
The bill came about in the wake of the sex abuse trial of Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics team doctor. He was given two concurrent sentences of 40 to 175 years and 40 to 125 years for abusing hundreds of young athletes, the report said.
Some victims of Nassar helped with the creation of the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., sponsored the bill.
The law requires coaches, trainers, and others to report any allegations of sexual abuse within 24 hours. It extends the statute of limitations to up to 10 years after a victim realizes that he or she has been abused. The bill also puts limitations on any athletes that are under 18 being alone with any adult who is not their parent.
"Protecting children from sexual abuse must be a top priority for everyone in this country, and this bill is an important first step," said Nita Chaudhary, cofounder of women’s organization UltraViolet, in HuffPost’s report.
Under the new law, an adult who fails to report a sexual abuse allegation could face up to one year in prison, New York’s WCAX reported.
However, she also slammed President Trump regarding his comments about sexual abuse. "Watching Donald Trump—a man who has been accused of sexual harassment or assault by more than 20 women—be the one to sign this legislation into law is deeply disturbing… in the last week alone, Trump repeatedly supported and sympathized with abusers over the survivors of abuse," Chaudhary said in the report.
The president said Saturday that in some abuse cases, lives were shattered by "a mere allegation."
Trump signed the bill behind closed doors amid a scandal over two firings of White House staff members over domestic abuse. Former White House staff secretary Rob Porter and speechwriter David Sorensen both resigned last week after allegations surfaced of domestic abuse.
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