April 5, 2018

Carpino’s Provisions Protecting Women’s Rights Advance

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HARTFORD – State Representative Christie Carpino’s concepts to strengthen existing state laws regarding the reporting of sexual assault cases and to help victims of domestic violence have advanced at the Capitol. Both concepts received overwhelming bipartisan support and passed out of the Judiciary Committee, on which Carpino serves as a longtime member.

Rep. Carpino said, “As a female legislator, I understand how important these provisions are to protecting women and their families. Women in the communities I represent, and statewide, will have additional time to seek justice. Not every victim is ready to come forward immediately and we must allow time for them to start the healing process. To continue the conversation, I also supported the creation of a task force to further examine the reporting requirements of sexual assaults.”

Carpino recently voted in favor of the following bills that were successfully passed by the Judiciary Committee:

• Senate Bill 238: An Act Concerning the Extension of The Statute of Limitations for The Prosecution of Sexual Assault
• Senate Bill 237: An Act Establishing a Task Force to Evaluate Statutes of Limitations for Sexual Assault Crimes
• Senate Bill 466: An Act Concerning Dual Arrests and The Training Required of Law Enforcement Personnel with Respect to Domestic Violence

“Domestic violence victims are afraid to call the police for fear of being arrested due to current law. I’ve sat with a victim who was still healing from her physical bruises, but also struggling with the ramifications her arrest was having on her children. It was for her and the women like her that I introduced this proposal,” explained Carpino.

Public testimony submitted in the support of the bill explained that the current mandatory arrest provision the dual arrest rate in the State of Connecticut is nearly three times the national average. As a result, the passage of this bill will reduce the number of unnecessary initial arrests.

In addition to her votes on the Judiciary Committee, Carpino also co-sponsored legislation that will dramatically increase the number of Connecticut residents that work for an organization with an established policy to prevent sexual harassment.

Carpino is hopeful these bills will continue through the legislative process which concludes May 9th.

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