House bills 5315, 5246, and 5497 weren’t called until late Wednesday as the Senate neared its midnight deadline, leaving Rep. Mae M. Flexer, D-Killingly, on pins and needles in the House chamber downstairs. Flexer, who chairs the Speaker’s Task Force on Domestic Violence, shepherded the legislation through the House days earlier and wasn’t sure if the Senate would have time to call the bills Wednesday in the rush before the midnight deadline.
She credited cooperation among task force members for the successful passage of the bills.
“From the beginning our task force worked in a really bipartisan fashion and we were able to heighten awareness among legislators about the issues of domestic violence,” Flexer said. “And because of that we were able to garner strong support in both chambers.”
Among other things, once the governor signs the bills the legislation clarifies the difference between a protective order (which is a criminal matter) and a restraining order (civil), an also will allow judges to put protective orders in place when offenders are on probation. Further, the legislation gives the Judicial Branch a $140,000 federal grant to develop a pilot program using GPS tracking on the most high risk domestic violence offenders.
HB 5315 An act concerning education and the reduction of domestic violence
HB 5246 An act concerning the protection of, and services for, victims of domestic violence
