Crime Committee Report e.indd - New York State Senate

2009-2010 Domestic Violence Legislative Agenda 39
The Task Force supported the Domestic Violence Omnibus bill (Governor’s Program bill).
S.5031-A
Chapter 476 of the Laws of 2010
Hassell-Thompson*, Adams, Breslin, Krueger, Oppenheimer, Sampson, Schneiderman
/A.9017 Weinstein
The provisions of this new law will:
• z require that attorneys for children be trained on the dynamics of domestic violence so
they and better counsel and represent their clients;
• z require courts to state on the record how the findings, facts and circumstances of domestic
violence or child abuse were factored into the custody or visitation determination,
where such abuse was established by a preponderance of the evidence;
• z allow evidence of certain sex crimes committed against members of the same family or
household to be heard in family court order of protection proceedings, while ensuring that
mandatory arrest applies and that orders of protection are filed with the statewide registry;
• z provide for transmission of domestic violence incident reports (DIRs) involving probationers
or parolees to the relevant agency as soon as practicable;
• z provide that records be made available to law enforcement when there is a conviction of
the violation of harassment in the second degree against a member of the same family or
household and;
• z provide greater protections to victims by adding the length of incarceration to the maximum
expiration date previously allowed for orders of protections issued in misdemeanor
and violation cases.
Chapter 428 of the Laws of 2009
S.5036 Hassell-Thompson*, Diaz, Huntley, Krueger, Onorato,
Sampson/A.3843a(Rosenthal)
A bill to amend the social services law to prohibit the state or any political subdivision (government
office) from compelling a victim of domestic violence to contact her or his abuser in
order to qualify for public benefits.
This bill would require the government office to provide a confidential intermediary in cases
where the application for public benefits would require confirmation of a lease or documentation
of residency and would therefore endanger the safety of the victim.
S.5037 [S5993] Hassell-Thompson* Diaz, Huntley, Krueger, Onorato, Oppenheimer, Thompson /
A4809-A
This bill required that rehabilitation programs for female inmates in state correctional
facilities be equivalent to those provided to male inmates of correctional facilities elsewhere
in the state, provided that such rehabilitation programs shall include, but not be limited to,
vocational, academic and industrial programs. There have existed, for years, a great disparity in
the types and numbers of vocational and industrial programs and classes accessible to woman
inmates during their incarceration; far fewer than are offered to men and for jobs that pay less
than the hourly rate in ‘traditional’ male occupations.
39 *Denotes member of NYS Senate Task Force on Domestic Violence
Standing Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Correction | 2009-2010 Report 35