Local lawmakers, police professionals and victim advocates are hailing a package of bills that help protect crime victims and were recently approved by the state Senate and moved on to the House. State Sen. Elder Vogel Jr., R-47th, who serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said six of the bills strengthen and reform Pennsylvania's domestic violence laws, offer greater protections to victims of domestic violence and their children, and hold abusers accountable.

A seventh bill would establish a crime victims' Bill of Rights in the Pennsylvania Constitution to protect and expand the rights of victims of violent crime.

“These bills are intended to address a number of serious and dangerous issues that face domestic violence victims in particular,” Vogel said in a news release. “We have heard from victims and from victims' rights advocacy groups, and we took their concerns very seriously. I hope these bills are quickly enacted into law and that Pennsylvania will provide these protective measures that victims need and deserve.”

The package includes Senate Bill 313, which makes it easier for domestic violence victims to remove the name of an abuser from a shared telephone plan; Senate Bill 449, which allows magisterial district judges to use a risk assessment tool when determining bail in domestic violence cases;

Senate Bill 500, which ensures that law enforcement protection is available to a victim before or while PFA orders are being served; Senate Bill 501, which removes third-party safekeeping as an option for a domestic violence defendant ordered by the court to relinquish firearms;

Senate Bill 502, which makes it easier for the court to extend a PFA order when an abuser is released from custody; Senate Bill 919, which allows domestic violence victims who live in public housing to be relocated to another unit; and Senate Bill 1011, which amends the state Constitution to create a crime victims' “Bill of Rights.”

Senate Bill 449 now goes to Gov. Tom Wolf for his signature and enactment into law. The other six bills were sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Linda Strachan, executive director of Victim Outreach Intervention Center (VOICe), who also serves on the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV) committee, which helped push this legislation through, said the bills are important to protect domestic violence victims.

Regarding Bill 501, Strachan said not only does it keep perpetrators from turning over firearms to friends or family members, but it also drastically reduces the deadline for relinquishing firearms from 60 days to 48 hours.

“That is a piece of legislation actually that I am proud to say PCADV has been working on almost four years to get that out of judiciary committee and moving on,” she said. “As we all know, for people seeking PFAs (protection from abuse orders), the most dangerous time is the immediate aftermath. This will hopefully save lives.”

The other bills then followed that bill into the package.

She said another reason for having this bill pass is that 54 percent of all mass shootings are somehow linked to family violence.

Vogel said in a phone interview that it was important to foster greater protection for victims and “to hold abusers accountable for their actions.”

“If one abuser slips through the cracks, then it is on us,” Vogel said. “The system has weaknesses in it, and we are trying to strengthen those weaknesses and adding teeth to the laws.”

Vogel said the victims' Bill of Rights follows the federal Marsy's Law, which establishes victims rights, with the intent to ensure victims are heard throughout the process of criminal prosecution.

“While many states, including Pennsylvania, have laws designed to enumerate the ways in which a victim can interact with the judicial system, there are no provisions in those statutes to ensure compliance,” according to a memo attached to the bill by sponsoring state Sen. Guy Reschenthaler, R-37th.

“Pennsylvania is one of 15 states whose constitution is silent on victims' rights. I agree with the aims of the national Marsy's Law project that states' constitutions should balance the rights of perpetrators with the rights of victims,” Reschenthaler said. “The constitutional amendment requires that, for the criminal and juvenile justice systems, the enumerated rights of victims are to be protected no less vigorously than the rights afforded the accused.”

Marsy's Law will ensure that victims of violent crime must by law be treated with respect and dignity by the criminal justice system. Courts must consider the safety of victims and families when setting bail and release conditions. Family members of victims must have legal standing in bail hearings, pleas, sentencing and parole hearings.

Tierne's Law, Bill 449, which is heading to Gov. Wolf's desk, allows district judges to use a risk assessment tool to determine whether a defendant poses a danger to a victim when determining bail. It was named in honor of Tierne Ewing, who was murdered in Washington County by her estranged husband, Vogel said.

The Victims' Rights bill establishes that, among other things, victims can refuse an interview, deposition or other discovery request from defendants or their agents, and are entitled to “reasonable protection” from defendants or anyone acting on their behalf.

Vogel called the proposals a “great package of bills” that allows “more rights and more safety” for victims.

Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger called the bill package progress toward allowing victims more say in the criminal prosecution procedure.

“These bills allow additional input and interaction with my office and understanding the criminal justice system, and for my office understanding the way they (victims) feel about the potential outcome of the case,” he said. “This gives them (victims) more interaction with the entire process rather than relying on getting the word third hand.”