Senator Richard Ross (R-Wrentham) was recently appointed to a
panel focused on initiatives to combat domestic violence. Ross and colleagues
from the House and Senate will craft compromise legislation as part of a
conference committee.
“Curbing domestic violence is a challenge that we must take
on. We need to help victims and increase penalties for future perpetrators,”
said Senator Ross. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to address
this problem.”
The legislation provides employment leave to victims of
domestic violence to address matters related to the abuse. It also establishes
the crime of strangulation, and increases penalties for other domestic violence
crimes.
The Senate and the House of Representatives passed differing
versions of this legislation. This conference committee has been assembled to
create a compromise bill that will be presented to Governor Patrick for his
approval.
