New protections enacted for stalking victims

Stalking is a crime that affects approximately 3.4 million Americans each year. These perpetrators know no economic, racial, or societal bounds. Some stalkers are former spouses or boyfriends who are angry about child custody battles or embittered by breakups. But they can also be total strangers to the victim.

Stalking can destroy lives. They sit outside homes for hours. They follow victims to work, to the gym, and out with friends. They call dozens of times a day and make constant threats.

Stalking may go on for years and can end in murder or suicide. Victims of stranger stalking in Washington state have virtually no tools to stop these actions. Under current law, the only protection these victims can receive is an anti-harassment order. Anti-harassment orders are what neighbors file against each other over barking dogs or fence disputes. Law enforcement places very low priority on anti-harassment orders.

Fortunately, HB 1383 sponsored by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-Kirkland) will help save lives. It will create a new a stalking protection order, similar to sexual assault and domestic violence protection orders. This will give law enforcement better tools to stop stalkers, more protections for victims, and harsher penalties for perpetrators.

HB 1383 passed the House and Senate unanimously. It was renamed the "Jennifer Paulson Stalking Protection Order" in memory of a Tacoma special education teacher who was murdered by her stalker three years ago. The bill now heads to the Governor's office for his signature.

More information:
•    End Stalking In America, Inc.
•    What other states are doing about stalking
•    Jennifer Paulson’s story

Photo credit: Salvatore Vuono/freedigitalphotos.net

Getting tough on drunk drivers

Washingtonians are three times more likely to be injured or killed on the roads than at the hands of criminals. Drunk drivers are a major cause of the tragedies in our neighborhoods and on our highways.

This afternoon, Governor Jay Inslee introduced his plan to combat chronic drunk driving at a press conference with Democratic and Republican lawmakers.

House Bill 2030, introduced by Rep. Dawn Morrell (D-Puyallup), streamlines complicated DUI laws in our state. After someone is arrested for DUI, law enforcement impounds the vehicle. An ignition interlock device would be installed before returning the car back to the driver. This is a common sense change that will help prevent tragedies.

It also creates a new driver’s license for the most persistent offenders that will prevent them from purchasing alcohol for ten years.

The legislation also dedicates funds to support highly-effective DUI emphasis patrols. Counties often lack the resources they need to prosecute repeat offenders. These changes will give them the funds they need to get the job done.

 “As a critical care nurse, I’ve had to ask the family of a 12-year-old if they wanted their child to be an organ donor,” said Rep. Morrell. “Once you’ve done that, you are resolved to prevent more carnage on our roads and more funerals for little boys and girls who’ll never go to prom, never get their diploma, and never bring their own sons and daughters home for Christmas to their grandparents. This bill will save lives.”

The leaders were joined by Frank and Carol Blair of Puyallup. Three years ago, their daughter Sheena was killed by a drunk driver. Carol and Frank have dedicated their lives to preventing another family from experiencing the same heartbreak.

“Victims of drunk drivers don’t get a second chance at life, so it’s time we stop giving the drunk drivers a second chance,” said Rep. Roger Goodman (D-Kirkland), chair of the House Public Safety Committee. “Governor Inslee has proposed strong new measures and although we only have a short time before the session ends I know we have the political will to pass these important reforms into law.”

The bill is scheduled for a public hearing the House Public Safety Committee on Thursday afternoon.

Read this story in Spanish.

Prevent drunk driving -- save lives

Lately, our local news has been full of disasters involving drunk drivers. In just one week, two grandparents were killed and their daughter-in-law and grandchild gravely injured when they were struck by a truck, and a mother was killed on her way to work by a car heading in the wrong direction on SR 520.

 

The drivers responsible for these incidents are both accused of being drunk at the time – and both had prior arrests for impaired driving on their records.

In response to these tragedies, Rep. Roger Goodman, founder and chair of the Washington Impaired Driving Working Group, is holding an emergency meeting Tuesday, April 9^th. There, lawmakers, prosecutors, defense attorneys, law enforcement and judges will discuss smart solutions to stop impaired drivers.

Some policies up for discussion will certainly be:

·Sobriety checkpoints.

·Decreasing the number of impaired driving offenses before someone is charged with  a felony DUI from 5 to 3.

·Immediate arrest and jail time after offense.

·Mandatory impoundment and installation of an Ignition Interlock Device upon arrest.

·Spike strips on freeway on-ramps to prevent cars from driving the wrong way.

·Better enforcement for our current DUI laws through increased funding for the State’s Target Zero Plan.

Washington state is a national leader in effective DUI Prevention legislation. Since 2006, we have reduced deaths and injuries on our roadways by 34 percent.

 

But we clearly must do more. Regardless of what happens at tomorrow’s meeting, it is certain that our legislators will continue to push forward with smarter laws to prevent Impaired Driving and save lives in Washington state.

Read this story in Spanish.

Drunk driving and carbon monoxide laws now in effect

Among the new laws that went into effect on New Year's Day are two laws aimed at saving lives.

The first deals with drunk drivers trying to cheat their ignition interlock devices. All new interlocks will now snap a photo when somebody blows into the tube to test their blood-alcohol level, so cheaters won't be able to get a sober passenger to blow into the tube for them.

The law – House Bill 2443 -- was authored by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-Kirkland), the new chair of the House Public Safety Committee.

You can read more about that law here, which also made other reforms to reduce drunk driving.

The second law deals with carbon monoxide poisoning, which can kill people without warning since the gas is odorless and colorless.

The law requires carbon monoxide detectors in homes and hotels, much like they're now required to have smoke detectors.

Related link: KOMO TV story about new laws taking effect Jan. 1.

Read this story in Spanish here.

Town hall meetings -- giving citizens a voice

Reps. Roger Goodman and Larry Springer
taking citizen questions at a town hall
meeting in Kirkland City Hall.

You may have participated in a town hall meeting via telephone.

Town hall meetings with lawmakers now happen in person, over the phone or through the web. People are also using email, Twitter, Facebook and other tools to have a dialogue with their local lawmakers.

This is a new twist on an old idea: bringing citizens together to discuss issues -- or decide things.

Typically, you hear the phrase "New England-style town hall meeting." It's true that small towns in New Hampshire, Vermont and elsewhere holding town hall meetings more than 300 years ago. Every citizen got the chance to talk, debate and vote on issues.

Yet this idea goes back even longer.

It's inspired by the ancient democracy in Athens and the notion that every citizen should have a say. The Swiss towns of Glarus and Appenzell have been Langsgemeinde -- town hall meetings -- for 700 years.

Lawmakers in the House and Senate, from both parties, are embracing modern twists on this old idea. Technology may be improving it. But the notion behind it, that every citizen counts, is as strong as ever.

Rep. Hans Dunshee will be calling constituents in the 44th Legislative District on May 7 at 6PM to host a tele-town hall.

Rep. Tami Green will be hosting her own tele-town hall for the people of the 28th Legislative District on May 9 at 6PM.

House Democrats hammer down on drunk driving

This year, 10,839 people will die in drunk-driving crashes in the U.S. – one death every 50 minutes, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

In our state there were 170 reported DUI fatalities in 2009 which, according to MADD, cost Washington state residents a whopping $935 million!

Rep. Roger Goodman decided enough is enough and introduced a package of DUI-related bills beefing up the consequences for drunk drivers. The bills were passed out of the House today.

• HB 2443 strengthens Washington’s nation-leading ignition-interlock program by adding cameras to the devices—at no cost to the state—to prevent offenders from gaming the system.

• HB 2302 increases financial penalties for  drunk driving offenses when a child under age 16 is in the car—and triples the amount of time an ignition interlock device must be on the offender’s vehicles, from 60 days to six months.

• HB 2176 prevents drunk drivers who kill or harm from using the statute of limitations to duck court-ordered payments to victims.

• HB 2405 allows courts to order drunk drivers who kill a parent to pay child support for the victim’s minor children.

First-time DUI offenders will also pay far more for their crimes if the reforms passed by the House today become law.  The House voted 85-11 for HB 1556, authored by Rep. Steve Kirby, which  triples the mandatory minimum sentence for a first-time DUI offense from one day to three days in jail. The bill also requires the offender to pay for the cost of incarceration.

“A day in jail simply isn’t enough,” said Kirby. “A slap on the hand doesn’t get anybody’s attention anymore.  We need to send a message that we’re serious about cracking down on people who drive drunk.”

To read this story in Spanish, click here.

Saving kids means saving tax dollars

Did you know that providing high-quality preschool for all children who want it could save Washington up to $120 million every year in special education costs alone? That’s the Feb. 7 “Early learning fact of the day” from the Children’s Alliance. 

A recent analysis of why High Quality Pre-K Programs Save Taxpayers Money Right Away shows why these savings are so big: Taxpayers typically pay nearly $100,000 more for kids in special education, compared with kids who don’t need these services—and  high quality early learning can cut the number of kids who need special education in half (48%, to be exact). 

Washington recently netted $60 million in federal dollars by winning a national Early Learning Challenge Fund grant, because we know how to do early learning right.

 Ask Kylee’s mom. Kylee’s family doctor suspected developmental delays. Teachers and others within a Tacoma ECEAP program swung into action, tailoring a plan to help Kylee get ready to learn in kindergarten. The result? Kylee avoided special education (and its costs), and is now a top notch fifth-grade student. In fact, she just earned a Governor’s Award for having one of the highest WASL scores at her elementary school.

 ECEAP worked for Kylee. It works for taxpayers, too. That’s why teachers and people who care about kids say that passing the High Quality Learning Act (HB 2448) proposed by Rep. Roger Goodman could save far more children—and tax dollars—in the years ahead.

To read this story in Spanish, click here.

Stopping cyber scams

Malicious identity thieves on Facebook, Twitter, craigslist and other social networks and online services would face greater legal penalties under a bill passed by the House Jan. 23.

The bill makes harmful electronic impersonation a civil offense, meaning a victim can sue the impersonator. It would add another level of protection to existing privacy laws.

“We’ve had some awful stories, in fact that sometimes have led to suicides, with abuse of social networking, including deception and harassment and fraud and intimidation,” Rep. Roger Goodman of Kirkland said during floor debate on the bill.

The bill was approved 95-0 and moves to the Senate. It was originally sponsored in 2011 by then-Rep. David Frockt of Seattle, who is now a senator.

To read a newspaper article on the bill written before the House vote, click here.

To read this story in Spanish, click here.

Calling all 45th District residents…

Feeling a bit disconnected from your state legislature these days?  Wish you could talk directly with your state representative?

Well, if you live in the 45th Legislative District, you’ll be able to participate in a live telephone town hall with state Rep. Roger Goodman tomorrow evening.

Rep. Goodman will be calling households in his district at about 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 14.  To participate in the live town hall, simply stay on the line when you get the call.

During the hour-long event, participants will have the opportunity to ask Rep. Goodman questions and speak directly with him.

Telephone town halls are another way for legislators to communicate with and receive feedback from their constituents.  While they are not a replacement for live town halls in the district, they do provide a way for more people to participate.  In fact, over 6000 constituents participated last month in a telephone town hall hosted by Rep. Ross Hunter in the neighboring 48th Legislative District.

To read this story in Spanish, click here.

December again brings call for halting drunken and drugged driving

It's time to underline and re-underline that tried and true "None for the road" rule in living rooms, break rooms, barrooms, and other potential imbibing rooms all across America. In unhappy fact, however, these upcoming winter holidays will likely suffer a greater than usual number of impaired motorists thoroughly terrorizing our thoroughfares -- hence December's stature as National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month. Most every citizen knows the wrenching anguish of losing a loved one, a friend, a co-worker, or an acquaintance to drunken driving – or perhaps at least knows someone who has been either injured or involved in a DUI accident or arrest.

The MADD website notes that at any given hour of the day or night, two million repeat drunken drivers are driving drunk. Again.

The tragedy hit awfully close to home for one legislator this past July. A young father is gone, killed in a car accident involving a driver under the influence. The young father was a neighbor of state Rep. Roger Goodman, who has sponsored several successful anti-DUI bills in the Legislature. Goodman said that the gentleman left two kids behind and "our whole neighborhood is in trauma." He emphasized that a drunken driver should be required to pay child support for kids who've lost their parent. The Kirkland lawmaker is fine-tuning a child-support bill as part of a comprehensive anti-DUI package for consideration in the 2012 regular session beginning Jan. 9.

To read this blog post in Spanish, go here.

Rep. Goodman reintroduces bill protecting rape victims from their assailant in the courtroom

KOMO 4 News reports on a bill introduced this week to offer more legal protection to victims of rape, shielding them from coming face-to-face with their alleged assailant in the courtroom.



The bill was first introduced last year by outgoing Rep. Brendan Williams. "I've heard heart-wrenching stories of sexual abuse survivors being revictimized in a courtroom by their abusers," said Williams. "Our justice system cannot endorse courtroom theater that leaves witnesses incapacitated with fear and unable to testify."

It passed the House but failed to pass the Senate. Now, Roger is taking up the mantle from Williams and plans to finish the job this session by reintroducing the legislation on the first possible day. "The rapists acting as their own attorney aren't trying to be found innocent by the jury," Goodman said. "They're taking one last chance to be in control of their victims again. It's sadistic and wrong."

HB 1001 direct the courts to develop rules so that judges could (a) order a stand-in attorney to question rape victims or (b) have accused rapists question victims by closed-circuit television.

Thinking outside the box...

Rep. Roger Goodman, D-Kirkland, takes an afternoon meeting with a constituent group outdoors.

New tool to prevent DUI-related deaths takes effect

Rep. Roger Goodman recently held a press conference with the Washington State Patrol and the Department of Licensing to announce the release of the ignition interlock license -- putting alcohol-detecting devices in the cars of people who have driven drunk.


Estimating with results in Arizona, around 100 lives could be saved this year alone.

“We already know that we can't trust known drunk drivers to obey the law," Goodman said, "so while we'll still be tough on them we're also going to be smart by using innovative technology, and this new approach should save countless lives.”

Here an ignition interlock device manufacturer demonstrates the process:


And here is the full press release from the WSP on the event for more information:
STATE’S NEW INTERLOCK LAW GOES INTO EFFECT JAN. 1

Goodman taking aim at Electoral College with national popular vote bill

As the state’s Electoral College delegates met today at the capitol, two state legislators announced their intention to move the country towards electing the president by a national popular vote.

State Sen. Joe McDermott, D-West Seattle, and Rep. Roger Goodman, D-Kirkland, will sponsor the legislation leading to a national popular vote for president and want to remind the state that the President of the United States is not elected by a direct vote of the people, but rather by 538 presidential electors.

The National Popular Vote bill would guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It’s so far been enacted by states possessing 50 electoral votes, 19 percent of the 270 necessary to bring the law into effect. Those states are Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, and New Jersey.

No changes to how the state allocates its presidential delegates would occur until the law is passed in states totaling to 270 electoral votes or more.

“The principle of one person, one vote is ingrained in the mind of every citizen,” Goodman said. “Even when explained, it’s impossible, with a straight face, to explain why the Electoral College should trump this cherished principle. When we vote for president, we don’t vote as Washingtonians—we vote as Americans.”

Link: National Popular Vote