Signed into law by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on August 19, the legislation is aimed at plugging loopholes that several barber shops in Washington Heights have exploited to sell the Nutcracker to underage high-school students.

But the possibility of greater police scrutiny around barber shops doesn't worry her, Perez said. "The law will probably help the hair salon industry here," she said.

Many

Jostling, along with Criminal Trespassing, Disorderly Conduct, Loitering for the Purpose of Engaging in a Prostitution Offense and several other New York State laws contain broad and equivocal wording. Punishments for the above violations and crimes can potentially including jail time and heavy fines. Timothy Sandefur, the principal attorney of The Pacific Legal Foundation, condemns the serious consequences resulting from many vague laws on the federal and state level. "Vagueness," he wrote in a 2010 Forbes op-ed "turns the law into a sword dangling over citizens' heads."

T

The fear of not being believed is a leading reason for not reporting sex assaults, said Amy Edelstein, Safe Horizon Rape Crisis Coordinator. Many victims also believe the assault was their fault.