A Long Island judge in New York has ruled that transmitting a sexually transmitted disease (STD) to a partner constitutes a form of domestic violence. This decision emerged during a divorce case, resulting in the aggrieved wife receiving 100% of the couple’s assets.
The ruling, issued on December 1 by Nassau County Judge Edmund Dane, involved the 2022 divorce of Thomas Saxton, who was described as a violent drug abuser with a substantial criminal record. Saxton was found to have had multiple affairs and transmitted herpes and HPV to his wife.
The wife, whose identity is being protected, disclosed to the court that she needed surgery to remove cancerous cells from her cervix, a condition linked to the HPV infection she contracted from Saxton. She will require lifelong medication as a result.
Judge Dane determined that the transmission of STDs constituted a “profound act of domestic violence” by Saxton, and consequently, he awarded the wife all of the couple’s assets. These assets included modest funds from their bank accounts and proceeds from the sale of their home.
This case marks the first instance where the transmission of an STD to a spouse has been classified as domestic violence and influenced the division of assets in a legal decision, according to Morghan Richardson, a law professor at Pace University.
“This ruling is significant and represents a landmark victory for advocates against domestic violence,” Richardson remarked.
While those who knowingly infect others with STDs can be prosecuted in New York, there’s no indication Saxton will face criminal charges for infecting his wife.
The ruling is “huge,” said lawyer Byron Divins, whose firm represented the wife.
“No court has ever really, as far as I’m aware, made [sexually transmitted diseases] the center of their decision,” said Divins, of the Williston Park-based Capetola & Divins. The decision is based on a 2020 amendment to New York law which lets courts weigh domestic violence when determining how to split up marital assets.
Divins credited trial attorney Alexandra Mule for proving the case against Saxton — who was arrested in 2022 for pulling a gun on his wife and their child while the family was at Cohen Children’s Medical Center.
Saxton, 38, whose arrest record stretches back to 2009 in Connecticut, was found to have multiple weapons, including ghost guns, after the hospital incident.
He pleaded guilty in January 2024 to weapons possession and is now serving a seven-year sentence in an upstate prison.
Saxton repeatedly threatened to kill his spouse; had multiple affairs; once threw a dirty frying pan at her; and spent hundreds of dollars a week on drugs, including heroin, crack and cocaine, according to the judge’s decision.
He even brought one of his paramours home while his wife and child were present.
The wife tearfully described how she had not slept with anyone outside her marriage — and how the resulting infections left her with “agonizing” pain.
The court found her account credible.
“I felt really vindicated through the whole thing after reading his decision,” she said, noting her ex “never even tried” to deny the allegations.
She urged other domestic violence victims to get help, acknowledging it’s “scary” to come forward.
Saxton, who did not have a lawyer during the divorce proceedings, could not be reached for comment.
The judge’s ruling is going to make cheating spouses “a little more careful” when they mess around, said matrimonial attorney Ankit Kappoor, whose office is based in Times Square.
“Historically, I would tell the guys to get a DNA test, but now I’m going to tell them to have an STI test,” he said.
