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REMARKS FOR PUBLIC FORUM REGARDING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LEGISLATION NEW YORK STATE SENATE DEMOCRATIC CONFERENCE MAY 30, 2012 SPONSORED BY: SENATOR RUTH-HASSELL-THOMPSON Im Shannon Wong and Im honored to be representing the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence and the YWCAs of NYS. The YWCA is helping NYSCADV with their legislative advocacy efforts for the end of this session. I would also like to thank the Senator Hassell-Thompson and all the senators in attendance for hosting this forum and allowing us to engage in conversation which will create paths to safety for victims of domestic violence. NYSCADV is a not-for-profit membership program, representing the local domestic violence service providers across New York State. The YWCA has 21 local associations from NYC to Buffalo many of whom are domestic violence service provides and all of whom serve women and children at the most vulnerable times of their lives. Victims of domestic violence have been assaulted by the people who claim to love them. Families are seeking shelter because their homes are unsafe. Girls are being told by abusive boyfriends that no one else will love them. Domestic violence victims are: Afraid of not being believed Afraid of losing their children Afraid of future violence and Afraid of being impoverished and left with nothing. It is the later two fears that that Id like to discuss today. NY has a long history of working to increase victim safety. These efforts must continue especially as it related to firearms and domestic violence. We recognize that it is difficult fight but the victims we serve need you to stand up for them. They need your help to ensure that guns are not in the hands of abusers. When intimate partner violence is combined with access to firearms an already dangerous situation can become lethal. Access to firearms increases the risk of intimate partner homicide by more than five times. In addition, abusers who possess guns tend to inflict the most severe abuse on their partners. New York State data shows that firearms were used in 25% of domestic violence homicides. While statistics and headlines speak mostly to murders, they do not account for the victims who are intimidated or threatened by guns and they do not account for victims who survive gunshots wounds. The advocacy community is committed to joining your efforts to pass S.1003, sponsored by Senator Peralta which will require the court to inquire if defendant or respondent possess a firearm. Current law provides for mandatory revocation or suspension of firearms licenses upon issuance of an temporary order

of protections, however these statues do not require the court to actually inquire as to the existence or location of firearms. This bill is needed to take the responsibility off the victim. Victims should not be expected to know each and every court option available to them, many victims will not know that the court can prohibit an offenders access to firearms. It should be automatic for the system to create this protection for victims. Im sure many of you are thinking an advocate should tell them, but it is important to remember that a large number of victims seek help on their own and never access a domestic violence service provider. Currently, some judges do make such inquires, while others do not. Since it is not required it is the responsibility of the victims to bring the possession of firearms to the attention of the court. Not only is this an unreasonable expectation for a victim, but the presentation of this information could place the victim at greater risk of retaliatory behavior. Finally, this bill will ensure that judges have the information they need to make decisions already required by law and they will have as a matter of record the disclosure by the defendant or respondent. I would like to switch gears for a minute and talk about another fear for victims of dv. That is the fear of being impoverished and left with nothing. We must also work on laws which recognize that economic self-sufficiency is essential for safety. We must also focuses on the economic empowerment of women. We do not want to see women lose their job because they have taken steps toward safety. We have heard too many stories of women who are unable to attend court proceeding or make appointments with attorneys or wait on line at social services because they have been told, if they take any more time off they will be fired or they are more subtly told you need to make an effort to be here as much as possible. But most victims of dv are women, and most are the primary care taker of children and the elderly. They have used a fair amount of their time to take care of sick kids or bring elderly relatives to the doctor. Once you add up all the appointments, many of which are emergency medical appts after being assaulted, a victim is often running of time. S.5526 sponsored by Senator Hassell-Thompson, helps address this issue by prohibiting employers from discriminating against victims of dv and allowing them to take time off charged to leave or unpaid. This bill asks employers to provide reasonable accommodations to victims of domestic, limited solely to absence. It also has some protections for the business community. The accommodation cannot cause undue hardship and the victim should provide advance notice or documentation as to why advance notice was not possible, while at the same time the bill insists that employers keep a victims dv experience confidential. We understand that there are many obstacles to legislative change, but we urge you to find ways to pass these bills which will increase victim safety and promote economic security. The victims we serve need your understanding, skills and tenacity. Together we can create paths to safety for victims of domestic violence.