Coffee Talk By Senator Glenn Coffee

When I was first elected to office, I served with fellow Republican Senator Brooks Douglass. While I always had an interest in supporting legislation to protect the public and assist those whose lives had been impacted by crime, Brooks had a perspective shared by no one else in the legislature. His parents had been the victims of cold-blooded murder and in that same attack, he and his sister had also been left for dead.

During his time in the Legislature, Senator Douglass worked tirelessly with our caucus and with Senators from across the aisle to promote legislation that better protected the rights of victims.

Senate Republicans have a long-standing tradition of passing landmark laws to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens, as well as the rights of crime victims. Former Republican State Senator Charles Ford passed a law giving civil protection to people defending themselves in their own home, and years later, Senator Harry Coates expanded on that legislation to give additional protection to those who must use force to protect themselves or their family members.

We also passed legislation to ensure photos of the victims, other than crime scene photos, could be allowed in a courtroom. I also authored legislation to ensure victims of crime, or their friends and family members, would not be subjected to cross-examination if they chose to deliver a victims impact statement during the sentencing phase of a trial. After a death penalty was overturned in part because the Court of Criminal Appeals criticized the victim’s widow for talking about her faith in God, Senator Jonathan Nichols passed legislation to ensure the right to testify about one’s faith in such criminal proceedings.

This past week, I won committee approval for a piece of legislation to help victims of sexual assault.

Law enforcement tells us one in ten woman become victims of this terrible crime, but many never even file charges, fearing the additional trauma of police interviews and court proceedings. Many women do not seek medical attention for those same reasons.

My legislation would enable rape victims to seek medical attention without undergoing police interviews while they’re being treated.

Evidence would still be collected at the time of the exam, but they would be able to wait until later to meet with police. This bill would give victims some emotional space, and may very well result in more women filing charges, and hopefully, putting more of these criminals behind bars before they can claim additional victims.

We do have a constitutional mandate to ensure the presumption of innocence, and ensure the accused as the right to representation and a fair trail. But it is just as important that we do everything in our power to ensure the system doesn’t result in unnecessary additional suffering and trauma for the victims of violent crime.

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