Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna has re-written the tough-on-domestic-violence bill that he proposed last year—it didn’t make it out of committee—so he can bring it back to the legislature this January, says McKenna spokesman Dan Sytman. The bill would increase jail time for a subset of repeat offenders (whose criminal histories indicate a lethal pattern) by adding weight to their previous misdemeanor DV convictions upon felony conviction.
Although a bill looking to curb the one in four women who will experience domestic violence (according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence) seems like a no brainer, the bill raises concerns from an unlikely crowd: Domestic violence advocates.
“We’re interested, but we’re worried too,” was the mantra from DV advocates during last year’s discussion of the bill. Last year, advocates testified that while the policy is a step in the right direction, more money out of the budget to finance longer sentences means less money for domestic violence organizations, jeopardizing shelters, legal aid, and support groups.
A domestic abuse advocate, who wanted to remain anonymous, says: “When money is tight, you have to pick or choose, move forward at the state level, or keep your shelter open at the local level.”
There isn’t a formal relationship between prison costs for DV offenders and money for DV programs, but advocates do feel that DV programs have not been a priority in the state budget and so spending money elsewhere hurts their work—even if the money is being spent a DV crackdown. They also know that their opinion carries weight on this legislation. Ironically, it puts them in a tough spot, they say.
Budgeting will no doubt come up again this session. The legislature is facing a $2.6 billion shortfall. Meanwhile, the recession is hurting private contributions to DV organizations, according to advocates working in the non-profit sector.
Seattle Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-36, Ballard)—the bill’s co-sponsor last session with the Republican prime sponsor, Sen. Dale Brandland (R-42, Rural Whatcom County ), is certainly aware that the legislation faces an uphill battle. Any increase in penalties and jail time, even warranted, automatically leads to an increase in cost she says, “but there are times,” she adds, noting the need to put people and safety before cost, “[when] we have to draw a line.”
AG McKenna’s bill doesn’t have a fiscal note yet, but according to McKenna spokesman Sytman the bill deals with the cost issue that sank it during last year’s frugal session. The new version of—again being sponsored by Sen. Brandland—will delay implementation of tougher sentences until August of 2011, giving prosecutors and the state time to adjust.
Sytman also argued that the bill would not lead to such dramatic cost increases as some feared, saying it would only effect the worst offenders—who are constantly in and out of the system. “More and more legislators and members of the public are realizing that laws on this subject need to be updated,” says Sytman.
Still, even with revisions, Sytman admits the state’s financial crisis could be a problem.
