May 4, 2020
COVID-19 pandemic is putting
domestic violence victims and survivors at further risk
Carson City,
NV – Today, Nevada Attorney General Aaron D. Ford and a coalition of 23
attorneys general sent a letter urging
the U.S. Senate to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which
expired more than a year ago. The attorneys general argue that as isolation and
uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic increase the risk to domestic violence
victims, the Senate must act immediately.
In April of 2019,
the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill with bipartisan support
reauthorizing the Act. After more than a year, the Senate has yet to take up
consideration of the bill, nor has it taken up a companion bill sponsored by
Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
“Violence against
women has been a public health crisis for generations, and the COVID-19
outbreak shows the urgent need to further strengthen protections for women
under federal law,” said AG Ford. “I’m urging the U.S. Senate to quickly
adopt this bill for the countless women in Nevada and across the country who
are counting on it.”
The Violence Against
Women Act, originally passed in 1994, created an Office on Violence Against
Women within the Department of Justice. The Act provides billions of dollars for
the investigation and prosecution of violent crimes against women, as well as
financial support to women in need. The Act has been reauthorized several
times, most recently in 2013. Each time Congress reauthorized the Violence
Against Women Act, it expanded the protections under the law with bipartisan
support.
In their letter, the
attorneys general note that the COVID-19 pandemic makes reauthorizing the Act
even more urgent, as measures to contain the virus can exacerbate isolation,
uncertainty, and economic instability, directly affecting victims of domestic
violence.
They write: “Reauthorization
of [the Violence Against Women Act] will not end the scourge of gender based
violence, but it is an important step toward more fully addressing the tragic
epidemic. The importance of urgent action is underscored by the particular
challenges faced by victims and survivors during the COVID-19 outbreak.”
The proposed House
bill expands the protections of the Violence Against Women Act by:
- Strengthening
protections for Native women by expanding jurisdiction of tribal courts over
non-Native men who abuse Native women;
- Codifying
important protections for LGBTQ individuals; and
- Closing
the “boyfriend loophole,” which allows certain abusive dating partners to
continue possessing firearms under federal law.
In addition to
Nevada, other states participating in this brief include: California, Colorado,
Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode
Island, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.
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