NRA lobby efforts kill civil protection order bill for Idaho rape victims, advocates say
Despite the emotional testimony of sexual assault survivors last month, a bill to allow those women to seek civil protection orders from abusers is dead in the Republican-dominated Idaho Legislature.
Who killed the bill? Largely it was the NRA, advocates say.
Rep. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, pitched the bill to House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee on Feb. 13, and it was set for a vote the following week. The vote never came.
Wintrow made clear when pitching her bill that if an accused person had a civil protection order filed against them, it would not affect that person’s right to own a firearm.
Concern came from some lawmakers because domestic civil protection orders, under federal law, can affect a subject’s ability to possess a firearm.
In a letter Wintrow wrote to her co-sponsors, and then distributed to the media Wednesday evening, she wrote “the NRA claimed, without evidence, that our definition of sexual assault would be translated by judges into a reference to ‘sexual abuse’ cited in the Domestic Violence Protection Act, still allowing judges to take firearms.”
On Thursday, committee chairman Rep. Greg Chaney, R-Caldwell, told the Idaho Statesman that he does not believe the NRA was the only reason the bill didn’t move forward. There were other concerns among lawmakers, including the evidentiary bar outlined in the bill.
“The burden of proof (for a civil protection order) is relatively light compared to criminal proceedings,” Chaney said. That was a concern for committee members, he said.
An Idaho deputy attorney general testified in committee last month, telling lawmakers that Wintrow’s bill would have no impact on a person’s right to own guns.
The bill’s intent was to allow sexual assault victims to file for a civil protection order against their abuser, something that current victims cannot do if the abuser isn’t someone they’re in a relationship with.
Under current Idaho law, a victim of a sexual assault that went unreported would not be eligible for a protection order if they aren’t in a relationship with the abuser.
Wintrow maintains the Domestic Violence Protection Act is not part of the bill she proposed.
“I know that Rep. Wintrow went to a lot of trouble to ensure that her bill was Second Amendment neutral,” Chaney told Statesman. “(But) there was concern after the hearing that it was not Second Amendment neutral.”
Chaney said he believed if the bill went to the House floor it would have faced a close margin. Once the committee became aware that there was a potential re-write happening in the bill, it puts lawmakers on guard and they become skeptical, thinking there’s a problem with the bill, he said.
“It became impractical to take a vote on her original bill,” Chaney said. “I call it blood in the water. They should not try to amend it a second time. It gives people reason to vote no.”
Protection orders in Idaho
Annie Hightower, director of law and policy for the Idaho Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence, told committee members last month that it takes an average of 85 days for a criminal charge to be filed in a sexual assault case. That’s from the date of the assault to the date of the arrest.
In the meantime, those victims cannot ask a judge for a protection order meant to keep the alleged perpetrator from attempting to contact them.
If Wintrow’s bill had passed, the victim would have been able to ask a judge for a protection order after presenting his or her case about why they don’t want to be contacted by the accused person. The accused person would also have been able to submit evidence. Protection orders are not a criminal charge, and any documentation around them is not public record.
“After considerable discussion and debate, along with the stakeholders, I feel it is inappropriate to go into an unrelated section of code and make such a significant change at the last minute without ample time to consult with the courts, stakeholders, and case law,“ Wintrow wrote in her letter.
On Wednesday, Hightower told the Idaho Statesman that the NRA representatives would not remain silent on Wintrow’s bill regarding sexual assault protection orders if lawmakers didn’t make changes to the Domestic Violence Protection Act.
In a Coalition newsletter, written by Hightower and dated Feb. 27, she thanked the victims who testified.
“We did offer to review the NRA’s suggestions over the summer to assess what the impact would be on survivors, but that the organization was unwilling to stay neutral on the sexual assault CPO bill if we did not make the changes they wanted now,” Hightower wrote. “While we find our stance reasonable, some legislators were unwilling to stand up to the NRA to promote the safety of survivors in the Idaho, which means that the bill will be held in committee and not see a vote this year.”
The Idaho Statesman reached out to NRA representatives on Thursday morning for comment, but had not received an immediate response.
