Provide Sexual Assault Victims with Permanent Protection from Their Attackers

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Sexual Assault Awareness Month and call attention to legislation I reintroduced this morning that will help to ensure that victims of sexual assaults can seek and receive permanent protection from their attackers.

By way of background, Nicole Norberto, a constituent of mine from Jackson, New Jersey and for whom the bill is named, was raped at the age of 15 by an acquaintance. While seeking prosecution of the attacker and appropriate restraints to protect herself, Nicole was advised by a court clerk in her home county that she could not request a permanent restraining order from the judge because she was not in a ``dating relationship'' with her attacker.

As a result, Nicole's no-contact order, which offered her a significant means of protection from her attacker, ended when her attacker was released from government supervision. To remedy this situation, the New Jersey state legislature adopted legislation (Chapter 133 of the laws of 2007) to extend the right of permanent protection to all victims of sexual abuse.

In my state, Nicole's Law closed a gaping loophole and the bill I introduced today will provide victims across the country with the same protections.

Mr. Speaker, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) estimates that approximately 2/3 of assaults are committed by someone known to the victim and 38 percent are a friend or acquaintance. Nicole's Law will ensure all victims have the option of obtaining a permanent restraining order--and the peace of mind it provides.

In addition to requiring states to ensure their laws afford victims the option of seeking a permanent restraining order, my bill will allow a judge to, essentially, default to permanent protection instead of issuing protection orders which expire on a specific date or upon termination. In other words, if the offender would like the order removed, the burden is on the offender to ask for its removal, rather than on the victim to ask for its continuance.

Mr. Speaker, RAINN states that 68 percent of sexual assaults are not reported to police and 98 percent of rapists will never spend a day in jail.

By offering victims added protection and support, we can enable them to have greater confidence in the administration of justice. The more support and confidence victims have in the ability of our justice system to hold those who commit sex crimes accountable, the more likely victims will come forward--which will help ensure that more criminals are properly prosecuted, leading to fewer victims in the future.

As Nicole stated this week: ``This law is a chance to help ensure victim's rights are protected and needs are met before, during and after a sexual assault. Hopefully this law will help victims of sexual assault be more comfortable with coming forward about their incident knowing that there are laws set in place to help protect them during this difficult process.''

We should do all we can to encourage victims to come forward and ensure those victims who do, are afforded permanent protection. My legislation will help this effort and I urge all members to support it.

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