State Victim Protections Bill Goes Into Effect

A new State Senate bill which seeks to expand child abuse victim protections went into effect on July 1.

State Senator Mark Messmer told The Herald-Tribune that he wrote State Senate Bill 551 after a constituent shared his story. The constituent told Messmer he struggled to block a 40-year-old-man’s attempts to contact his 14-year-old daughter. Messmer said the man sent the minor over one thousand messages, and faced no prosecution.

The bill allows parents to obtain protective orders against anyone they suspect of trying to initiate sexual contact with their children. In the case of Messmer’s constituent, this would allow the father to obtain a protective order before any criminal investigation or convictions need be completed.

The bill also expands privacy protections for minors. The names or initials of children who are the victims of violent crimes are no longer to be listed in public documents. The Department of Child Services will no longer disclose any records pertaining to an ongoing investigation or criminal prosecution.

The Indiana chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists criticized this part of the bill, according to a statement on their website. The SPJ and other opponents suggest that this could increase secrecy surrounding child abuse cases.

Criminal investigations can stretch months or years with repeated appeals, delaying the release of information. This could inhibit journalists from uncovering the failures in the Department of Child Service’s system which led to the crimes, according to the SPJ.

Representative Matt Pierce of Bloomington took issue with other aspects of the bill. He cited a need to seek the opinions of public defenders, according to The Herald-Tribune. Pierce is the only member of the initial House committee on the bill who voted against it.

Michael Moore of the Indiana Public Defender Council claims the bill will compel judges to extend sex offenders’ time on the registry by an additional ten years for something as small as a typo on their forms. State Senator Messmer rejected this claim, stating that the bill grants judges discretionary power over additions to sex offenders’ time on the registry.

The bill passed the State House with 92 in agreement, 4 opposed. It passed the State Senate with 48 in agreement, none opposed.