Each year, anti-domestic violence advocates, lawmakers and the legal community recognize October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, culminating in a number or proposals, initiatives and campaigns. This year, for example, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV) is focusing its efforts on blocking one particular piece of legislation it fears would put domestic violence victims at risk.
Additionally, lawmakers across the country have proposed a myriad of bills aimed at preventing and mitigating the impact of domestic violence, like expanding the availability of free services for those dealing with the horrors of domestic violence.
Sen. Dan Sullivan, (R-AK) earlier this year introduced a bill to help educate people about pro bono legal services throughout the nation. Sullivan highlighted the importance of combating the issue due to his state’s “devastatingly high rates of domestic violence.” His bill would compel each United States Attorney’s Office to partner with local organizations to host a public event promoting free legal services.
The NCADV, on the other hand, has called for legislators to oppose the contentious Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, claiming it would make it easier for abusers to stalk their victims while travelling in other states. “The House may vote on a Bill that would make it terrifyingly easy for abusers to legally carry concealed firearms into other states when stalking their victims,” according to information from the organization. “[The Act] would undercut existing state and local protections for victims of domestic and dating violence and replace those protections with the weakest gun laws in the country. It’s a race to the bottom. And survivors of domestic violence will be the losers.”
The NCADV fears the bill, H.R. 38, would force states to accept concealed carry permits issued to domestic violence offenders who would otherwise be prohibited from obtaining one in the state they’re travelling to, calling that a “clear violation of the Constitution’s recognition of states’ rights.”
According to information from the NCADV, approximately 470 women have been killed with a gun this year by their abuser. Nationally, nearly 20 people per minute are abused by an intimate partner, which amounts to more than 10 million men and women each year. More than 20,000 phone calls to domestic violence hotlines are made each day.
The NCADV is also teaming up with other advocacy groups to launch a new initiative sometime next year called Disarm Domestic Violence. “This collaborative effort will culminate in a website that allows individuals to research state-specific laws on domestic violence restraining order firearm removals,” according to information from the organization. “Knowledge is empowering. Survivors of domestic violence deserve to know their options. They deserve to have information. They deserve to live without fear of their armed abusers.”
More broadly, the National Crime Victim Law Institute (NCVLI) is working toward increasing the availability of services for a wide range of victims by working with the Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crimes. The collaboration is part-way through creating a series of legal assistance networks aimed at addressing the “full scope of victims’ needs,” according to information from the NCVLI, which is providing training and technical assistance for the networks.
Get more information about the Victim Legal Assistance networks.