A person injured by the commission of a felony, for which the offender is sentenced to imprisonment in a state prison, is deemed the creditor of the offender, and of his estate after his death, within the provisions of the statutes relating thereto. The damages sustained by the person injured by the felonious act, may be ascertained in an action brought for that purpose by him against the trustees of the estate of the offender, appointed under the provisions of the statutes, or the executor or administrator of the offender's estate.
New York Legal Code