It is time for domestic violence reform in South Carolina.
South Carolina currently ranks #2 in the nation for the number of women murdered by men. After being ranked #1 the previous year and for the past 17 years never going below the top 10, SC has a long and troubled history with domestic violence rates. It is time to support legal changes that help change this deadly statistic.
Safe Harbor supports the changes proposed in Senate Bill 0003 which would create tougher sentencing for domestic violence offenders, including a critical piece that will revoke gun ownership to prior offenders. Senate Bill 0003 is a bipartisan bill sponsored by Sen. Larry Martin (R-Pickens), Sen. Katrina Shealy (R-Lexington), Sen. Gerald Malloy (D-Darlington), Sen. John Coursen (R- Richland), Sen. Mike Fair (R-Greenville), Sen. Ross Turner (R-Greenville), Sen. Joel Lourie (D-Richland), & Sen. Greg Hembree (R-Horry).
Click here to find the SC senator who represents your voting district! Email, call or write him or her, urging them to support Senate Bill 0003.
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Facts about Domestic Violence Homicides in SC
• Of the females murdered in South Carolina in 2012, 71% were killed with guns
• More than one-third of those charged with murder had at least one arrest for criminal domestic violence.
• When there is a firearm in the home, a domestic violence assault is 23 times more likely to result in death than an assault using another weapon or bodily assault.
• A recent Winthrop University poll found that 79 percent of the people in S.C. support getting guns out of the hands of domestic violence offenders.
Facts about the Senate Bill 0003
• Increases the jail time and fines associated with CDV offenses
• Creates a tiered system for charging CDV offenders, based on the severity of the perpetrated abuse
• Abusers convicted of criminal domestic violence would lose their right to possess a firearm or ammunition or carry a concealed weapon. This ban would expire ten years after an offender’s conviction. The offender then would be eligible to own a gun again.
• Creates a “civil no-contact order” procedure to protect victims of crime where physical or psychological harm was present from contact with the offender
Please take a moment to help victims of domestic violence. Contact your senator, urging him/her to support Senate Bill 0003!
