Times Union13%
Child killings spur call for Hochul’s signature on Kyra’s Law 10%
By H.R. Schneider9%
8/6/2026, 12:27:17 PM
BS Summary: This article contains 9 faulty reasoning types, including Confirmation Bias, Appeal to Emotion, and Hindsight Bias, with Hasty Generalization as the most egregious example at 11.4% saturation with 109 hits. Analysis detected 519 faulty-reasoning hits from 953 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 20.4% and a BS Rank of 10% (25,683 of 28,420 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 90.40% of the article peer group.
BALLSTON SPA — A 15-year-old teenager on Thursday described how a Capital Region Family Court had “forever destroyed” her childhood at a news conference held by advocates and prosecutors calling for sweeping changes to New York statutes governing those proceedings.
The teenager, whose identity is being withheld by the Times Union, recounted how her biological father allegedly began sexually abusing her when she was 3 years old.
Relief came when her mother took her and her siblings and left him, she said.
But multiple subsequent decisions by a Family Court judge required her to visit her father, she said, despite a hospital visit, a complaint made to Child Protective Services and her own account of abuse to the judge, who she alleges enabled the abuse to continue in addition to her being subjected to violence, threats and neglect.
“The problem is not that kids don’t speak up,” she said.
“It’s that we’re not listened to when we do.”
Her remarks came at a news conference outside the Saratoga County District Attorney’s Office, where advocates called on Gov.
Kathy Hochul to sign a bill into law that would require more scrutiny of custody rights for parents when credible allegations of abuse may help protect future victims.
The legislation, passed by the state Senate and Assembly in June, is called Kyra’s Law.
It is named for 2-year-old Kyra Franchetti, who was shot by her father before he doused their Virginia home with gasoline in what was later determined to be a murder-suicide.
Months before the Long Island toddler’s death, Kyra’s father had been cleared for a visitation in Nassau County Family Court, despite allegations from her mother, Jacqueline Franchetti, that he had been stalking her and was suicidal.
In the 10 years since, 46 New York children have died at the hands of a parent under similar circumstances, Franchetti said at the news conference.
Seven incidents occurred this year, she said, including the recent case in which police said four children were killed by their mother and grandmother in Mechanicville in June.
The mother and grandmother both committed suicide.
More: Mechanicville police believe mother, grandmother plotted to kill 4 children | Father shares final messages with mother accused
Like Kyra’s, their deaths were entirely preventable, Franchetti said.
“None of their safety came first,” she said, standing by a photo of a smiling, rosy-cheeked Kyra hugging an Elmo doll.
Mechanicville police say 44-year-old Sarah Myers and her 64-year-old mother Amy Steadman conspired to kill Myers’ four children with medication before they died by suicide.
The children — 13-year-old Harper, 11-year-old Hudson and 10-year-old twins Gavin and Gracelynn — died on June 10.
Gavin was stabbed to death and the others were poisoned, police Chief William Rabbitt said at a news conference Tuesday.
The Mechanicville children’s father, Brady Harmon, previously said he received 10 letters from Saratoga County Child Protective Services over the course of three years informing him the agency was investigating the living conditions at their home.
The letters stopped after the children left the district in 2024 to be homeschooled — something Harmon said he had never been told.
In 2024, the last year Harmon said he received a letter, a Saratoga County CPS caseworker told the Times Union that staffing levels had placed the agency at a “dangerous tipping point.”
The proposed Kyra’s Law would require Family Court judges to more carefully evaluate evidence of domestic violence, child abuse, coercive control and other factors when making custody and visitation decisions.
The legislation also proposes expanding judicial training, strengthening child safety protections and limiting court practices that advocates say can place children at risk.
Nicolette Simmonds, a spokeswoman for the governor’s office, said Hochul would review the legislation, and noted past bills Hochul has signed that intended to strengthen orders of protection in Family Court.
Brett Eby, who was elected district attorney in November, joined Franchetti and other legal and domestic abuse-prevention advocates calling for the passage of the proposed law.
He said his office also is forming a child safety review commission that would include law enforcement officers, teachers, student counselors, pediatric nurses and CPS workers.
“One thing that we really want to look at is children out of school,” he said.
“I know there is a correlation between truancy and child abuse in neglect cases — but to what extent, and what can we do to prevent that?”
He said there is a need for the proposed Kyra’s Law as he recounted how people filter in and out of nearby Saratoga County Family Court, some in tears.
Advocates said the passage of the bill would allow abuse victims more protection in Family Court cases.
Free resources
Contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org/chat
Warning signs of suicide
Talking about wanting to die
Looking for a way to kill oneself
Talking about feeling hopeless or having no purpose
Talking about feeling trapped or in unbearable pain
Talking about being a burden to others
Increasing the use of alcohol or drugs
Acting anxious, agitated, or recklessly
Sleeping too little or too much
Withdrawing or feeling isolated
Showing rage or talking about seeking revenge
Displaying extreme mood swings
Giving away meaningful possessions
Making final arrangements
What to do
Listen and acknowledge the person’s emotions
Ask about suicidal thoughts: “Some people in your situation have thought about suicide.
Have you?
Are you now?”
Do not leave the person alone
Remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs, or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt
Call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988
Take the person to an emergency room, or seek help from a medical or mental health professional
Speakers
2speakers16%attributed speech800writer words
Selected voice
100%flagged-word coverageJacqueline Franchetti
84 attributed words55% of attributed speech35% writer coverage
Attribution is sentence-level. Pattern percentages are calculated only from words assigned to that voice.
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Analysis
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