COLUMBIA, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) – Advocates for victims and survivors of domestic violence are urging South Carolina lawmakers to expand protections to cover more abuse victims.
South Carolina is one of just four states where dating partners do not qualify for orders of protection in domestic abuse situations.
Legislation advancing at the State House would change that.
“It extends life-saving protections to both teen and adult victims of dating violence,” South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Executive Director, Sara Barber, said during a Senate Judiciary subcommittee meeting.
Data shows in cases of intimate partner violence in South Carolina, the people involved are likely to be or have been dating when the violence occurred.
“In a 2023 report, SLED reported that 33 of the 55 intimate partner homicides in South Carolina, or 59%, were committed by a current or former girlfriend or boyfriend,” Barber said
Two nearly identical bills filed in the Senate would expand who can ask a court for an order of protection in a domestic abuse situation.
Under existing law, people qualify if are married or used to be married to their abuser, if they share a child with that person, or if they are a male and female who live or used to live together.
The legislation would change “male and female” to “persons” to include same-sex couples, whom a 2017 state Supreme Court ruling determined can petition for orders of protection.
But state code still does not reflect that, eight years after the ruling.
“The fact that the statutory language still contains the terms ‘male’ and ‘female’ causes ongoing confusion amongst the courts, attorneys, advocates, and victims. This confusion often results in qualifying victims believing or being told they are not entitled to the protections of the statute,” Barber said.
The legislation would also add people in a dating relationship, who don’t live together or have a child together, to those who can seek orders of protection.
A judge would determine who exactly qualifies in each situation, using factors like the length and nature of the relationship.
The National Rifle Association opposes the proposal to add dating relationships to state law.
A representative for the gun advocacy group told senators they are concerned the language is too broad and could lead to more people losing their Second Amendment right to own firearms.
“If a 17-year-old makes a threat in immaturity and learning how to negotiate relationships, is that then a lifetime prohibitor for them owning firearms?” Taylor McKee with the NRA said.
The legislation advanced out of a Senate Judiciary subcommittee last week and will be before the full Senate Judiciary Committee during its meeting Tuesday.
This is not the first time these changes have been proposed, but they have never reached the governor’s desk.
Similar bills have also been filed this year in the House of Representatives, where the push has bipartisan sponsorship.
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