Adultery was made illegal in New York in 1907, but that has changed. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law Friday a bill that legalizes adultery.
The bill was passed by the state Senate almost unanimously.
State Assemblyman Charles Lavine (D-North Shore) supported the move. He said the anti-adultery law was outdated and did not protect the community.
“This antiquated law has had no absolutely deterrent effect whatsoever,” Lavine said. “People who might have wanted to repeal it [in the past] were afraid that it might be too controversial,” Lavine said.
Hochul said in a statement that relationship issues should be a personal matter.
“These matters should clearly be handled by these individuals and not our criminal justice system,” Hochul said. “Let’s take this silly, outdated statute off the books, once and for all.”
New York state is now one of five states that have repealed adultery statutes since 2015.
The law is effective immediately.
