Politics & Government
Cardin Seeks Support for Domestic Violence Law
The Violence Against Women Act would pay for $660 million in programs to help domestic violence victims.
Maryland programs for domestic violence victims could be hurt if the Violence Against Women Act isn't reauthorized by Congress.
The proposed legislation, which provides about $660 million over a five-year period, would fund programs aimed at protecting victims of domestic violence, education on prevention and legal aid for survivors, according to the Christian Science Monitor.
U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) has implored the House to pass the Senate’s version of VAWA.
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“The Violence Against Women Act has a proven track record of protecting women from domestic violence and it is hard to understand opposition to legislation with the goal of curbing domestic violence,” Cardin stated in a press release. “Saving women’s lives should not be a partisan issue.”
“Can we stop the election-year gimmicks? Can we stop these manufactured wars that pit one group of Americans against another group of Americans?” freshman Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) asked in mid May on the House floor, according to theChristian Science Monitor.
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The Senate passed its version in April.
The U.S. House of Representatives' version, passed in May, does not explicitly define that VAWA would cover the rights of gay, lesbian and transgender Americans. It leaves the language up to local law enforcement to interpret.
The House version also doesn’t protect the rights of Native American women to take their abusers to court, rather only allowing them to apply for a protective order from U.S. court system.
Finally, it doesn’t allow for women in the country illegally to apply for citizenship if they work with law enforcement in a domestic violence investigation. Republicans believe the provision would be used for amnesty, while Democrats believe those victims wouldn’t come forward to report abuse in fear of deportation.
“The statistics of domestic violence are alarming, yet, domestic violence remains one the most under-reported crimes in the country,” Cardin added in the statement. “These victims need to know that they have our support, including access to justice, help with housing, medical care, and economic opportunity.”
According to state statistics one in four women will be the victim of domestic violence in their lifetime. In 2009, there were more than 18,500 reported cases of domestic abuse and 38 fatalities in Maryland.
In Montgomery County, police spokeswoman Angela Cruz provided the following statistics for domestic incidents for 2006 to 2011:
Year
Homicide
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated Assault
Simple Assault
Other Sex Crimes
Total
2006
1
25
7
79
815
15
942
2007
2
19
9
80
743
13
866
2008
0
11
2
131
612
10
766
2009
0
11
3
158
588
11
771
2010
0
18
4
74
658
5
759
2011
1
19
4
64
601
14
703
Total
4
103
29
586
4017
68
4807
Here are the statistics for the number of domestic arrests for 2006 to 2011:
Year
Homicide
Rape
Robbery
Aggravated Assault
Simple Assault
Other Sex Crimes
Total
2006
1
6
5
49
229
8
298
2007
1
8
3
42
209
2
265
2008
0
4
1
60
177
7
249
2009
0
4
2
75
155
7
243
2010
0
8
2
42
178
2
232
2011
0
1
4
36
150
6
197
Total
2
31
17
304
1098
32
1484
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