Senate Passes Berry’s Domestic Violence Bill
Majority Leader Fred Berry announced on March 20 the passing of Senate Bill, No. 62, An Act Establishing Criminal Penalties for Assault and Battery on a Family or Household Member. Berry, in conjunction with Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett and multiple colleagues in the Senate, filed this bill in the hopes of seeking increased penalties on repeated acts of domestic assault and battery. The legislation allows District Attorneys the discretion to seek felony charges for domestic assault and battery when the situation merits, specifically in the case of a repeat batterer. Potentially, jail time could be doubled for these individuals.
WCVB Editorial in Support of S.62
AN ACT TO PENALIZE DOMESTIC ABUSERS
Description
- The act would allow district attorneys to seek a felony charge for domestic assault or domestic assault and battery when the situation merits, specifically in the case of a repeat batterer.
- Under the current law, the maximum sentence for domestic assault or domestic assault and battery is 2 1/2 years to be served in the House of Corrections.
- Currently prosecutors can pursue felony charges in domestic abuse cases when severe bodily harm occurs.
- Most domestic assault and domestic assault and battery incidents do not rise to the level of severe bodily harm. They are, however, often repetitive in nature and one component of a system of power and control that the perpetrator wields over the victim. Over time, this crime is extremely damaging to victims and their families. Sadly, it is at point of escaping the abuse when a victim is most at risk of being killed by the perpetrator.
- Absent this legislation, repeat batterers will continue to revolve through district court with each incident treated in isolation rather than as the overall system of abuse that these cases represent.
History
- Filed in two previous legislative sessions by Sen. Fred Berry, D.A. Jonathan Blodgett, Rep. Robert Fennell and Sen. Stephen Baddour.
- In the last legislative session, S. 65 passed in the Senate and was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means favorably reported the bill with an amendment (S. 2326).
