STATEHOUSE - State Rep. Cleo Duncan (R-Greensburg) voted today to support House Bill 1276 to further protect those victim of domestic violence and bullying. The bill passed with a 97-1 vote.

"There is no excuse for domestic violence, but it unfortunately incidents are still occurring much too often," said Rep. Duncan. "Today, however, we took a big step in the right direction and found several ways we can protect victims of these horrendous acts of violence. Everyone deserves to feel safe in their own home."

House Bill 1276 addresses domestic violence and child visitation of those people charged with domestic violence. Some provisions included in the bill:

Increases the time a facility is required to have custody of a person arrested for domestic violence to 24 hours.

Requires the individual charged with domestic violence to complete a batterers' intervention program.

Allows a court to request the person to wear a GPS tracking device as a condition of bail.

Requires school corporations to provide instruction or program regarding domestic violence.

Allows a court to require a person convicted of domestic battery to have only supervised visitation with the person's child and requires the department of child services (DCS) to facilitate the supervised visitation.

Requires DCS to administer and staff a parental assistance hotline.

House Bill 1276 also addresses the issue of bullying through electronic communication devices. The bill would develop a study committee to look into recommendations regarding the punishment of sending sexually suggestive or sexually explicit material over the Internet or by use of a cell phone device.

The bill now heads to the Indiana Senate for further discussion.

If someone is experiencing domestic violence in their home, or know someone who is, please call toll free to the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (ICADV) crisis line at 1-800-332-7385.

« Back to News Release List

Link to this event: