COLUMBIA--The domestic violence bill at the heart of
the controversy surrounding state Rep. John Graham Altman is getting a second
chance.
Speaker David Wilkins, R-Greenville, and House leaders will introduce new
legislation that would impose tougher penalties for repeat abusers when
lawmakers return to the Statehouse on Tuesday.
"We're trying to find some language that we can all agree on so we can end up
with a stronger bill than what was discussed earlier this week," said Judiciary
Committee Chairman Jim Harrison, R-Columbia. "I'm optimistic that with this new
language, there will be very little opposition and it will sail through."
Wilkins said reviving the bill had been a priority even before the issue was
stirred up by a television report that featured Altman's now-infamous comments
about abused women.
"Before the interview, Chairman Harrison was already talking about changes
that we could make," Wilkins said.
The committee tabled the original bill, co-sponsored by Reps. Gilda
Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, and Bob Leach, R-Greer, on Monday after Altman raised
various objections.
Harrison, Altman and other committee members joked about the title of the
bill -- "Protecting Our Women in Every Relationship (POWER)" -- saying it should
be called "Protecting Our People in Every Relationship," or "POPER." Those in
the room at the time said one lawmaker pronounced it "pop her."
Cobb-Hunter applauded the House leaders' efforts but said the damage was
done. "What frustrates me most of all is that all (those concerns) were
addressed in the subcommittee," she said. "We weren't as far apart as we
thought, but because they didn't discuss that, they didn't know."
Lost in the firestorm is the fact that some domestic violence crimes already
are felonies in South Carolina.
In 2003, the governor signed a law that makes criminal domestic violence of a
high and aggravated nature punishable as a felony against even first-time
offenders.
Under current law, first, second and third domestic violence offenses are
misdemeanors. The original legislation didn't try to make them felonies, it just
increased the jail time and fines judges could impose.
The bill Wilkins and Harrison are preparing would make third assaults
felonies.
Lawmakers also soon will decide whether to accept Senate amendments to a
House bill that protects unemployment benefits for women who leave work because
of fear of their abusers.
Victims groups say felony status for repeat offenders is needed because women
often feel they can't leave their abusers. Among the barriers to making a safe
break: Financial dependence on the man, child-custody concerns, confusion about
legal options and lack of housing or good employment.
The matter is complicated because a woman could be at risk of worse violence
at the hands of her partner once she leaves.
"Of course, we get frustrated when women go back, but we also know they have
to make their own decision," said Elmire Raven, executive director of My
Sister's House, a Charleston shelter that houses some 500 battered women and
their children each year.
"We can't judge her, because it's her decision to leave or not, and she needs
to feel safe doing that."
These are issues lawmakers fail to understand, said Laura Hudson, public
policy director of the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network. Hudson said she
believes the controversy created by Altman's statements has cast a much-needed
spotlight on the issue.
"This is probably the best thing that's ever happened to us," Hudson said. "I
believe that we can turn something someone meant for evil into something good."
John Frank covers state politics and the Legislature from Columbia. Contact
him at jbfrank@postandcourier.com or (803)
799-9051. Holly Auer of The Post and Courier staff contributed to this report.
