A bill with bipartisan support moved trough the Georgia General Assembly this session and allows for the creation multiagency centers that provide coordinated services to victims of family violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse, human trafficking and associated crimes. Along with creating the family justice centers, HB 1283 would also require law enforcement to retain sexual assault evidence for up to 10 years if a victim does not immediately report the abuse.
“My first job out of law school was working for the brand-new model Domestic Violence Court in Miami-Dade, Florida,” said Rep. Esther Panitch, D-Sandy Springs, lead sponsor of the bill. “Over 30 years later, I watched a bill I authored in Georgia pass both chambers without a single opposing vote. Survivors should not have to navigate a fragmented system during the most difficult time of their lives. Family Justice Centers bring those services together, so the system works for victims, not the other way around. When Rep. Karen Lupton’s rape kit preservation bill needed a vehicle, both parties in both chambers came together to make it happen. That is what this work looks like. I am grateful to the survivor community for entrusting me with it.”
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