MEASURE TO IMPROVE USE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RISK-ASSESSMENTS ADVANCES

Senator Emily Cain sponsors bill to increase access to risk-assessment data

AUGUSTA—During the 2014 legislative session, the legislature will consider a bill sponsored by Senator Emily Cain, a Democrat from Orono to improve the safety of victims of domestic violence by sharing evidence-based risk assessment data with members of high risk response teams.

“Domestic violence impacts people of all backgrounds, and we must do everything we can to stop the escalation of domestic violence in our communities,” said Senator Cain. “Evidence-based risk assessments are a valuable tool. By increasing the availability of risk-assessment data, we will better empower police officers, victims’ advocates, and prosecutors to make the best plan to keep victims and families safe.”

In 2012, then-House Democratic Leader Cain sponsored a bill requiring all police officers use and be trained in how to administer an evidence-based domestic violence risk assessment. The 13 question evaluation takes about 10 minutes to complete. However, the law did not specify how the information could be used, and not all areas have high-risk response teams.

Senator Cain’s bill, LR 2494 “An Act to Increase Safety for Victims of Domestic Violence,” continues the work to reduce domestic violence homicide and serious assaults from the bill passed last session. This bill supports the development of domestic violence high risk response teams so that victims are kept safer and Maine’s scarce resources can be better focused on high risk situations.

Risk assessment teams better enable authorities and advocates to determine the chance that an offender will hurt his or her partner again, and plan the most effective intervention.

Last year, Maine police reported more than 5,500 incidents of domestic violence. In Maine, 45 percent of arrests for assault, and 50 percent of homicides are domestic violence related.

For the second regular session of the legislature, bills must be approved by the Legislative Council, a committee comprised of the ten legislative leaders. The Legislative Council met today to review more than 400 bills for the second regular session, including Senator Cain’s bill.

The full legislature will reconvene in January 2014.

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