Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas I told him to stop. He thought I was joking. I froze" Kristina Erickson of Beloit College in Wisconsin as quoted in the Washington Post. The serious issue of sexual assault is no joke. As a husband and father it is difficult for me to comprehend how anyone can perpetrate such a crime. You can imagine how protective I feel for my family but I feel the same way for my friends and even for people I have never met. I have far too many friends who have been victimized. One is one too many. This last session I took some steps to assist these innocent victims.
Sometimes the hard work of government means dealing with things that are unpleasant. One example is addressing the aftermath of sexual assault. Recent inescapable news has highlighted problems with leaders not aggressively confronting the crime of sexual assault. Locally weve seen a lack of seriousness and delayed accountability at Baylor University. In California at Stanford University a young unconscious woman was brutally raped and the criminal who perpetrated the vicious crime received just six months in jail. While these incidents occurred on college campuses this terrible crime is not restricted to academic institutions.
There are far too many victims of sexual assault. Frequently victims of such crimes feel revictimized during investigations. Prior to the last session a constituent who was the victim of an attack contacted me. She reported the attack to police and upon admittance at the hospital she submitted to a forensic exam. These rape kits" are critical to collect evidence so the state can prosecute the rapist. The cost of the forensic medical exam was submitted by the hospital to her private insurance but the full cost was not covered. As a result she received a bill for the exam. Sometimes rape victims are charged $800-$1000 for such exams. Do you find that appalling? I do. That is simply unacceptable.
After listening to this story I filed and passed HB 1446 to ensure that the Crime Victims Compensation Fund now covers such expenses so that this never happens again in Texas. This new law also provides relocation funds for victims of stalking family violence or victims of sexual assault who are attacked in their place of residence. This one-time assistance of up to $2000 can be used for relocation expenses including expenses for rental deposit utility connections expenses relating to the moving of belongings motor vehicle mileage expenses transportation lodging and limited housing rental expenses.
Often times when a defendant is convicted of continuous sexual abuse of young child indecency with a child sexual assault aggravated sexual assault or stalking the victim is concerned about their safety when the criminal is eventually released from jail. Victims may try to get protective orders put in place as an added layer of protection but under previous Texas law one would have to wait for the perpetrator to get out of jail before requesting a protective order. A major problem was that it was often hard to locate and serve the protective order on the person once they were released from prison.
To remedy this problem I passed HB 1447 that allows victims to request protective orders when the convict is still in custody instead of searching for them once they are released from prison. Under this new law the victim has the right to be informed that they can request a protective order when the defendant is convicted or placed on deferred adjudication. No longer will constables have to search for these perpetrators because now they will be in custody when a judge issues the protective order.
While these new laws will help victims of sexual assault they will only help after the fact. It is more important that everyone takes a role in preventing sexual assault. In the Stanford case a male athlete violently sexually assaulted an unconscious woman. When the judge sentenced him to just six months in jail the judge stated a longer sentence would have a severe impact on him". The victim rightfully pointed out the rape had a severe impact" on her.
The victim read a letter in court. I encourage you to read it. She said in part As this is a first offence I can see where leniency would beckon. On the other hand as a society we cannot forgive everyones first sexual assault or digital rape. It doesnt make sense. The seriousness of rape has to be communicated clearly we should not create a culture that suggests we learn that rape is wrong through trial and error. The consequences of sexual assault needs to be severe enough that people feel enough fear to exercise good judgment even if they are drunk severe enough to be preventative".
She is right.
Tony Dale was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in November 2012. He is a husband father small business owner veteran of the U.S. Army and former Mayor Pro Tem of Cedar Park. He represents western Williamson County including the communities of Leander Cedar Park Brushy Creek and the Williamson County portion of Austin. He is a member of the Homeland Security & Public Safety Committee.
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas I told him to stop. He thought I was joking. I froze" Kristina Erickson of Beloit College in Wisconsin as quoted in the Washington Post. The serious issue of sexual assault is no joke. As a husband and father it is difficult for me to comprehend how anyone can perpetrate such a crime. You can imagine how protective I feel for my family but I feel the same way for my friends and even for people I have never met. I have far too many friends who have been victimized. One is one too many. This last session I took some steps to assist these innocent victims.
Sometimes the hard work of government means dealing with things that are unpleasant. One example is addressing the aftermath of sexual assault. Recent inescapable news has highlighted problems with leaders not aggressively confronting the crime of sexual assault. Locally weve seen a lack of seriousness and delayed accountability at Baylor University. In California at Stanford University a young unconscious woman was brutally raped and the criminal who perpetrated the vicious crime received just six months in jail. While these incidents occurred on college campuses this terrible crime is not restricted to academic institutions.
There are far too many victims of sexual assault. Frequently victims of such crimes feel revictimized during investigations. Prior to the last session a constituent who was the victim of an attack contacted me. She reported the attack to police and upon admittance at the hospital she submitted to a forensic exam. These rape kits" are critical to collect evidence so the state can prosecute the rapist. The cost of the forensic medical exam was submitted by the hospital to her private insurance but the full cost was not covered. As a result she received a bill for the exam. Sometimes rape victims are charged $800-$1000 for such exams. Do you find that appalling? I do. That is simply unacceptable.
After listening to this story I filed and passed HB 1446 to ensure that the Crime Victims Compensation Fund now covers such expenses so that this never happens again in Texas. This new law also provides relocation funds for victims of stalking family violence or victims of sexual assault who are attacked in their place of residence. This one-time assistance of up to $2000 can be used for relocation expenses including expenses for rental deposit utility connections expenses relating to the moving of belongings motor vehicle mileage expenses transportation lodging and limited housing rental expenses.
Often times when a defendant is convicted of continuous sexual abuse of young child indecency with a child sexual assault aggravated sexual assault or stalking the victim is concerned about their safety when the criminal is eventually released from jail. Victims may try to get protective orders put in place as an added layer of protection but under previous Texas law one would have to wait for the perpetrator to get out of jail before requesting a protective order. A major problem was that it was often hard to locate and serve the protective order on the person once they were released from prison.
To remedy this problem I passed HB 1447 that allows victims to request protective orders when the convict is still in custody instead of searching for them once they are released from prison. Under this new law the victim has the right to be informed that they can request a protective order when the defendant is convicted or placed on deferred adjudication. No longer will constables have to search for these perpetrators because now they will be in custody when a judge issues the protective order.
While these new laws will help victims of sexual assault they will only help after the fact. It is more important that everyone takes a role in preventing sexual assault. In the Stanford case a male athlete violently sexually assaulted an unconscious woman. When the judge sentenced him to just six months in jail the judge stated a longer sentence would have a severe impact on him". The victim rightfully pointed out the rape had a severe impact" on her.
The victim read a letter in court. I encourage you to read it. She said in part As this is a first offence I can see where leniency would beckon. On the other hand as a society we cannot forgive everyones first sexual assault or digital rape. It doesnt make sense. The seriousness of rape has to be communicated clearly we should not create a culture that suggests we learn that rape is wrong through trial and error. The consequences of sexual assault needs to be severe enough that people feel enough fear to exercise good judgment even if they are drunk severe enough to be preventative".
She is right.
Tony Dale was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in November 2012. He is a husband father small business owner veteran of the U.S. Army and former Mayor Pro Tem of Cedar Park. He represents western Williamson County including the communities of Leander Cedar Park Brushy Creek and the Williamson County portion of Austin. He is a member of the Homeland Security & Public Safety Committee.
