Lawmakers say the measure closes gaps in Florida law that have left victims vulnerable after leaving abusive partners.
The post Legislature passes survivor-inspired domestic violence bill creating stronger protection for victims appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..
—
Significantly stronger safeguards for victims of domestic and dating violence are coming to the Sunshine State through legislation that just passed unanimously.
Members of the Senate voted 37-0 for the measure (HB 277), which cleared the House with similarly uniform support last week.
The bill is the passion project of Lake Worth Beach Democratic Rep. Debra Tendrich, a domestic violence survivor who carried the bill with Placida Republican Rep. Danny Nix.
Miami Republican Sen. Alexis Calatayud sponsored companion legislation (SB 682) across the rotunda, which she tabled in favor of HB 277.
Prior to Monday’s vote on the bill, which she described as “inspired by our House sponsor’s life story,” Calatayud acknowledged attendance in the Senate chamber of Marjorie Morton, whose daughter Rachel Kerr was killed in a January murder-suicide by Kerr’s estranged husband.
“This legislation has elements that directly combat the gaps in our (system and) the reality (that if its language was in place for) our justice system and law enforcement processes, that would’ve saved Rachel. That would have provided greater protections and barriers (against) people who would otherwise prey on the people closest to them,” Calatayud said.
“This is incredibly important policy. Unfortunately, people — constituents across the state — experience (problems this bill aims to address) every day. And we can make a real difference for them.”
HB 277 would enhance penalties for repeat domestic violence offenders, hiking violation classifications by one degree. It would increase Florida’s victim-relocation allowance from $1,500 to $2,500, which Tendrich said reflects “the real cost of relocating safely in our state.”
It would also allow threats and cruelty to pets and service animals to be included in protective injunctions.
The measure would strengthen coordination around military protective orders by allowing them to be considered when civilian injunctions are sought, while improving communication between civilian and military law enforcement when violations are suspected.
Further, HB 277 would create a pilot program in Pinellas County allowing courts to order electronic monitoring for certain offenders on probation who pose a threat to victims, with the goal of creating a statewide program in the future.
Every year in Florida, nearly 107,000 cases of domestic violence are reported, Department of Children and Families data shows. And according to the Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness, 75% of domestic violence-related homicides occur after separation, meaning victims are most at risk of severe harm after they leave their abuser.
The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, meanwhile, estimates that 38% of Florida women and 29% of Florida men experience intimate-partner violence in their lifetimes — among the highest rates in the country.
Tendrich — who spoke repeatedly during the bill’s progression about how she fled to Florida in 2012 with nothing but her daughter, two changes of clothing and $15 — compared living with domestic violence to being held at gunpoint, as victims must calculate every step for fear that the proverbial trigger will be pulled.
“Living in fear does more than cause pain; it slowly erodes freedoms that every American is supposed to have — the rights to live, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” she said. “Yet, for victims of domestic violence, those rights are taken away behind closed doors.”
Senate Democratic Leader Lori Berman and Tamarac Democratic Sen. Rosalind Osgood praised HB 277 and its sponsors Monday for bringing solutions to a persistent problem.
Berman, who is close to passing related legislation (SB 298, HB 269) with Republican Reps. Peggy Gossett-Seidman and Rachel Plakon that would create a new 911 alert system for abuse victims, spoke of how while the rate of most crimes have declined in recent years, domestic violence occurrences have continued to rise.
“Every time I open the newspaper and read about something like that, I get so frustrated. So, I am so glad to see this bill,” she said. “It has a lot of really good things that will hopefully start to reverse the trend in the state of Florida and nationwide. We are not unique in this trend.”
Osgood called HB 277 “critically important,” adding that there needs to be a greater focus on the prevalence of dating violence among youths.
“We normally hear about these stories when it’s a husband and a wife and somebody with kids, but this is a real issue that happens to a lot of people, particularly women on the high school level, and they don’t talk to anyone about it. They don’t share,” she said.
A four-year study of domestic violence found that while the issue is growing in prevalence, its true scale is even greater than reporting shows, since many of the victims — of whom 80% are women — don’t come forward.
“This bill gives a legal way out, a legal way to address it,” Osgood said. “It allows a victim to feel more protected, that there is something they can do other than just bear the shame and the terror that’s oftentimes inflicted upon people that find themselves in this situation.”
The post Legislature passes survivor-inspired domestic violence bill creating stronger protection for victims appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..
