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UPPER MARLBORO, MD – Last week, Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy urged the Maryland Legislature to pass House Bill 233 (HB233) and Senate Bill 212 (SB212), “Criminal Law - Assault in the First Degree - Suffocation or Strangulation.” The legislation in the House Chamber, HB233, was crossed filed with SB212 in the Senate Chamber. Both bills will make strangulation a first-degree felony assault.
“I am calling on the Maryland Legislature to enact House Bill 233 and Senate Bill 212 before ending the 2020 legislative session,” Braveboy said. “Strangulation is one of the most lethal forms of domestic violence. A victim of strangulation is seven times more likely to end up a victim of a homicide. Victims may experience unconsciousness within 5-10 seconds and death within minutes. This law will result in more appropriate charging decisions, more appropriate sentencing and will enable the state’s attorneys in Maryland to save more lives and protect the public.”
House Bill 233 was heard in the Judiciary Committee of the House Chamber on January 28th 1 p.m. The Senate Committee, Judicial Proceedings, heard SB 212 on January 29th.
Braveboy was joined by Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy. She was also joined by Senator Susan Lee (District 16), who sponsored SB212, and Prince George’s County Delegation Vice-Chair Vanessa Atterbeary (District 13), and Delegate Jesse Pippy (District 4), cosponsors of HB233.
In addition, the press conference was attended by survivors, advocates, and supporters who also testified at today’s hearing in the House Chamber.
State’s Attorney Braveboy’s recent Op-ed on making strangulation a first-degree felony assault was published in the Baltimore Sun. Click on the following link to read more: https://bit.ly/2TQ6kh4.
Contact: Denise Smith | Phone: 240-832-4970 | Email: dgsmith@co.pg.md.us