Transitioning Times

As we posted about before , in Pennsylvania, not everyone who is abused can get a PFA.   Currently, they are offered only to people who have suffered abuse at the hands of someone they dated or are related to by blood or marriage.   Unfortunately, people who have been assaulted, even sexually assaulted, by a stranger or acquaintance, cannot obtain a restraining order (PFA) in Pennsylvania.   In the last session of the PA Legislature, a bill was introduced to protect victims of sexual assault from their assailants.   It would have given them the right to file for a PFA and receive protection under a civil law.   At that time, the bill stalled in the Judiciary Committee and was not passed before the conclusion of the session.   Another bill, PA Senate 681 , was introduced and will be considered when the next session begins on June 3, 2013. This bill allows for victims of sexual assault to ask the court to order the assailant not to contact the vic...

Today, I had the opportunity to read a very thoughtful article written by Anna Kegler, posted on Huffington Post: Sexual Violence Prevention: It's Time to Go Big .  I highly encourage you to read the article.  It discusses the lack of a national "public service" campaign to prevent sexual violence beyond communties on the internet.  As the other staff people at Transitions can tell you, I enjoy reading (and sharing!) news stories and other media that I see involving domestic violence, sexual assault and other topics that affect our clients.  However, I had never really thought about the fact that there is no national campaign for preventing sexual abuse.  The only media that I have recently seen about domestic violence or sexual abuse is on billboards.  In today's digital world, billboards are not enough.  Perhaps because domestic violence agencies and rape crisis centers are found in most communties, people think there is enough awareness.  Victi...

Message from PCAR: Representative Dan Deasy has introduced legislation (HB 1999) that would require an individual who witnesses or an individual who is told by a direct witness about a sexual crime against a child to report it to law enforcement.  Failure to report could result in a third degree felony charge (currently the failure to report is a misdemeanor). See Rep. Deasy's webpage for the news release:   http://www.pahouse.com/PR/027110911.asp

Please see this urgent message from the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape: In light of alarming statistics related to physical and emotional bullying, the Pennsylvania Senate has marked October 2011 as "Bullying Awareness Month," encouraging schools and parents to talk with youth about bullying—and in particular, cyberbullying. Often characterized as harmless by youth who don't have to interact with their peers on a face-to-face basis, cyberbullying can cause as much emotional pain and trauma as its physical counterpart. PA Senator Stewart Greenleaf (R-12) proposes to address cyberbullying through Senate Bill 850 , which would assure that youth who engage in intentionally harmful behavior toward their peers receive court intervention and that youth who are victims of cyberbullying are not criminalized, thereby sparing them from further emotional harm. Conversely, House Bill 815 —which Juvenile Law Center opposes, and which is in the Senate Judiciary Committee—c...