Topeka, KS Repeals Domestic Violence Law

Outrage, disbelief, horror:  these are all the feelings I have had since hearing about the Topeka, Kansas City Council and their decision to repeal their domestic violence law.

You can read more about it here. 

I first saw an email about it and I immediately thought it was a hoax. I contacted a Kansas colleague and asked if this was true. To my absolute horror, it wasn’t a joke.

Anthony S. Bush/AP Photo

How did the city of Topeka come to this? The County District Attorney refused to prosecute misdemeanors due to budget cuts. Last year half of their misdemeanors were domestic violence cases.

Then the City said they couldn’t afford it either. So what was their solution? Repeal the law so domestic violence is no longer a crime in the city of Topeka in a play to force the County to step up.

REALLY?! That’s your solution? For the city and the county to play games with people’s lives is outrageous and unacceptable.

Victims of domestic violence do not matter to them; they are nothing but a cost to the city - one that they don’t want to incur. So the most vulnerable citizens are tossed aside in a political game to see who will give in first.

It makes me both incredibly sad and angry. We have worked so hard to let victims of domestic violence know that they matter; that they are worthy and deserving of a better life. We’ve worked to let them know that they don’t have to live in fear; that just because they are in a relationship with somebody doesn’t mean they can be abused.

The City of Topeka shattered that in one vote. Victim advocates in Topeka must start from scratch. They and the victims they work with are in my thoughts. Hopefully, someday soon the politics will be over and victims of domestic violence in Topeka will have the protection they deserve. But how many lives will be lost while they wait to be thought of as more than a budget line item?
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UPDATE: After the City of Topeka voted to repeal their domestic violence law and a national outcry ensued, the County District Attorney’s office has decided to once handle the prosecution of these cases. However, the domestic violence law is still repealed in the City of Topeka.

UPDATE ON STATE FUNDING

We learned late last week that STATE FUNDING FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SERVICES HAS BEEN RESTORED. $2.375 MILLION HAS BEEN PUT BACK IN THE BUDGET.

State domestic violence funding was restored on Thursday, March 4, by the House Budget Chairman Alan Icet (R-Wildwood) in his Department of Social Services appropriations bill HB 2011. A House appropriations committee had earlier recommended cutting state domestic violence funding by 50% ($2.375 million), but the Chairman’s new budget bill will restore DV funding to current levels ($4.75 million).

Chairman Icet’s bill will be the basis of House Budget Committee deliberations for each state department. Those hearings will begin March 15 after this week’s legislative spring break.

How wonderful it was to learn that the funding cuts that would have been absolutely devastating to our budgets had been restored in the House Budget! The work that Hope House does is critical to helping victims of domestic violence reclaim their lives and focus on starting new lives free of abuse.

Thank you to all of you who called or wrote to your representatives to encourage them to reinstate this funding. It does make a difference and your voice was heard.

Thank you to all of our representatives who not only heard that message but advocated on our behalf. It is clear they understood the devastating impact these cuts would have on victims and how lives would be lost.

We are not through the budget process and I know that the state is facing critical shortfalls in revenue. Very difficult decisions are ahead for our representatives. I am extremely grateful for their commitment to the residents of Missouri during this very difficult time.