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Email This ArticleA firestorm was created two weeks ago when a member of the Charleston Legislative Delegation made derogatory comments about the victims of domestic violence. He has since changed his attitude, which resulted in a unanimous vote to approve a bill that would strength the state's anti-domestic violence laws.
This week, a Senate subcommittee will take up the bill. Sen. Larry Martin, R-Pickens, subcommittee chairman, has told The Associated Press that he will seek common ground in order to get the bill passed. A compromise between the desires of victim advocates who want more stringent rules, including minimum sentences, and attorneys who seek judicial discretion in sentencing may be necessary -- but make it a last resort. Don't make battered or dead spouses or significant others the only people who suffer.
After the firestorm erupted over Rep. John Graham Altman's comments, the House moved swiftly and passed a bill that significantly improve the state's anti-domestic violence law, including:
• Making a first conviction for criminal domestic violence a misdemeanor that could bring up to 30 days in jail and a fine up to $2,500. The current penalty is 30 days in jail or a $500 fine;
• Making a second offense a misdemeanor that could bring a minimum of 30 days to a maximum of one year in jail with up to $5,000 in fines, up from 30 days and a $500 fine; and
• Making a third offense a felony with one to five years in prison. It now is a misdemeanor with up to three years in prison.
The punishment for second and third offenses has some attorneys saying that battered spouses may have second thoughts about reporting even first offenses of violence since all three require jail time.
In this argument, the victim advocates should be on the winning side. Strengthen the law. Failure to do so sends the wrong message to those people who are most vulnerable -- the victims. And the Senate should move swiftly to ensure that the bill is approved before the end of the session.
