MedStar St. Mary’s Launches Domestic Violence Program
MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital opened Maryland’s ninth hospital-based domestic violence program this week.
Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown
Lt. Governor Anthony G. Brown announced the inclusion Monday alongside leadership from MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital, domestic violence advocates, community members, and state and local officials.
The new Hospital-Based Domestic Violence Program at MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital will be funded in part by a grant from the Governor’s Office of Crime Control & Prevention.
Lt. Gov. Brown is also successfully championing through the state legislature a three-bill package to reduce the burden of proof required to obtain a peace or protective order, add second degree assault to the list of crimes for which domestic violence victims can obtain a final permanent protective order, and give judges the authority to impose enhanced penalties for acts of violence committed in the presence of a minor in the home.
Two of these critically needed bills are now headed to the Governor’s desk for his signature.
“No family is immune from the tragedy of domestic violence,” Mr. Brown said. “I learned that lesson when my cousin Cathy was senselessly murdered by her estranged boyfriend in 2008. Under the O’Malley-Brown Administration, we’ve implemented several common sense reforms to drive domestic violence related assaults down 20% and reduced the number of women and children killed by 32%, but our work is not finished. By passing these two critically needed bills we are making it easier for victims to obtain peace and protective orders from abusers and helping ensure safer communities and safer homes for all of our families.”
Source: Press Office of Lt. Governor Anthony Brown
Some might watch the trailer for the new prize winning “Private Violence” just coming out. One in four women are physically abused by their domestic partner. It was a shocking revelation to me. I had thought the incidence was high, but that puts the problem in a light I hadn’t understood before. And this is not just a Maryland problem but a world wide problem. Civil rights for women still have not arrived.