New measures aimed at tightening protection from abuse orders

Four Republican state senators unveiled legislation Tuesday that would tighten the laws surrounding protection from abuse orders. Advocates praised the measures.

“I have stood over the dead bodies of women who have been killed,” Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said. “I have sent the offenders to prison for the rest of their lives and I have listened to the children cry as they realize the life they face without any parents. These bills are a common-sense way for all of us to address these issues and make life a little safer.”

State Sen. Tom Killion, R-9th Dist., was joined by state Sens. Thomas McGarrigle. R-26th Dist., Camera Bartolotta, R-46th Dist., and Randy Vulakovich, R38th Dist., in presenting a package of bills meant to help strengthen the law surrounding protection from abuse orders.

Killion explained that in 2015, when he was a state representative, he asked the Joint State Government Commission to review the PFA process in Pennsylvania to see what could be done to protect domestic violence victims. Last November, the commission completed its review and made recommendations resulting in the series of bills unveiled Tuesday. “We can do better and we need to do more — that is why we are here today,” Killion said.

Ellen Kramer of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence said the legislation was needed.

“There is so much more that must be done to stem the tide of domestic violence in our communities,” she said. “For many domestic violence victims, a PFA offers vital protection that allows them to escape their abusive relationships and live in safer and more independent environments.”

She said Pennsylvania

courts receive 40,000 requests annually for protection from abuse orders.

“While the majority of victims do go on to live safely and without violence in their lives, sadly that is not always the case,” Kramer said.

She added that there have been 1,600 domestic violence-related homicides in Pennsylvania over the last decade and 102 in 2016 last year. Two were the death of law enforcement officers.

The Republican senators presented four pieces of legislation at a press conference Tuesday.

One was SB 500, introduced

by Vulakovich, who also served 27 years in law enforcement.

“Protection from abuse orders can literally be the difference between life and death for victims of a horrific crime,” he said.

His legislation would provide for accompaniment of a plaintiff to their residence before or while the petition and orders are being served if the plaintiff communicates that would be necessary to protect their safety.

McGarrigle’s bill, SB 502, would allow the court the ability to extend terms of an existing order or issue a new one under certain circumstances.

“My bill ... recognizes just because an offender has been incarcerated doesn’t mean a threat has ended,” he said. “Providing the victim with an extended PFA protection is a significant tool for victim safety and offender accountability.”

He said his legislation was intended to provide further protection from abuse.

“Domestic abuse victims and most crime victims do not want to be defined by the crime,” McGarrigle said. “They want to move on with their lives. This cannot happen if an abuser is determined to

prevent it.”

Bartolotta’s bill, SB 449, is named Tierne’s Law in honor of Tierne Ewing of Washington County, who was killed by her estranged husband in September after a history of abuse.

“Far too often, abusers who are released on bond seek retribution against their victims with disastrous consequences,” the senator said.

She said judges often take the heat but they face a challenge of balancing the constitutional rights of the accused against the safety of the victims.

“Unfortunately, they frequently don’t have enough

information to sort out which offenders still pose a danger to the people they victimized,” Bartolotta said. “The more information we make available to judges, the better the chances are they can protect the victims who are still in danger.”

Her bill would allow judges to use risk assessment tools to determine whether a defendant poses a danger to a victim when determining bail.

Killion’s bill, SB 501, would require those with active PFAs to relinquish any and all firearms to law enforcement or registered gun dealers.