Legislators do not feel there is enough safeguards in place for victims of domestic violence. A new bill (CS/HB 443) wants to make the penalties harsher for those who violate protective orders.
The new bill if approved will go into effect in October per News4Jax.Currently a domestic violence victim can get a protective order against another that would last a maximum of 15 days.
Leisa Wiseman with Florida’s Coalition Against Domestic Violence says that is not enough.
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Completing this poll grants you access to Shark Tank updates free of charge. You may opt out at anytime. You also agree to this site's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.Basically when there’s a violation of an injunction for protection, it’s a misdemeanor, and no matter how many times there’s a violation, it’s a misdemeanor.
Domestic violence in Florida is a big problem. The coalition reported there were more than 127,000 hotline calls last year alone.
The new bill is sponsored by Representative Jose Rodriquez (Miami-D). He has said:Although most people basically are scared straight after the first violation and the court order, and they don’t re-violate because they take the order seriously, there are a handful of dangerous repeat violators and because there is no increased penalty, they keep seeing the same individuals for the same problem and it’s a public safety issue.
If the bill is approved it would escalate the penalties on repeat offenders. If someone violates an injunction for the third time they would be hit with a felony offense.
The bill would apply to dating, sexual violence, stalking and cyberstalking.
You can view the original filed version of the bill here: CS.HB 443