Stricter domestic violence penalties proposed

The Judiciary Committee heard a bill Feb. 27 that would change penalties and definitions regarding domestic violence and stalking.

Introduced by Omaha Sen. Rick Kolowski, LB307 would update statutes relating to stalking and domestic violence to:
• increase the penalty from a Class III to a Class II felony for a first degree assault against an intimate partner;
• redefine certain injuries as a second-degree assault;
• require courts to make penalties consistent with the number of prior convictions;
• insert a venue description that allows prosecution in either county where an offense occurred or where the victim resides; and
• specify that communication by electronic means is a form of stalking.

Kolowski said the bill is designed to hold domestic violence offenders more strictly accountable for their crimes. In 2014, he said, 15,000 calls were made to 911 in Douglas County for domestic abuse. New technology creates new ways for people to harass one another, he said, and current statute needs to be updated to keep up with those rapid changes.

“We need to be able to prosecute crimes to fit the damage done,” he said.

Latasha Edwards, a stalking victim, testified in support of the bill. In addition to leaving multiple and threatening messages, Edwards said her stalker hacked into her daughter’s phone account to impersonate her and sent messages that made it appear her daughter was in danger. The threatening tone of the messages continued to increase, even after her stalker was in jail, Edwards said.

“With a law like this my situation would not have escalated,” she said.

Julie Medina, Douglas County deputy attorney, also spoke in favor of the bill. Nationwide, she said, 76 percent of victims of intimate partner homicides were being stalked prior to their deaths. Technology has allowed stalkers to take identity theft to new levels, she said, such as having utilities and mail service discontinued.

“Stalking is the epitome of power and control and these victims live in constant fear,” Medina said. “It’s necessary to change the statute to fit the 21st century stalker.”

Ted Lohrberg of the Nebraska Criminal Defense Attorneys Association testified in opposition to the bill. Enhancing penalties may impact the ability to prosecute offenders effectively, he said, because it can lead to plea bargaining.

The committee took no immediate action on the bill.