In a decisive move, the Oregon House has passed a bill aimed at tightening sentencing rules for domestic violence perpetrators. This legislative step, documented in a recent release from the House Democrats, was propelled by bipartisan support to ensure that acts of violence like strangulation and assault are accounted for separately in the eyes of the court.
Following the 2024 Oregon Court of Appeals decision in State v. Miles, lawmakers saw a need to readdress how domestic violence cases are sentenced. By passing HB 2975A, the House is boldly taking a stance against what Rep. Annessa Hartman described as a troubling legal situation. Strangulation was being merged with other charges as a single offense, a practice which Hartman, as stated by the House Democrats, found deeply troubling since "strangulation is not just another form of assault—it’s a lethal act of control."
By amending the existing statute, HB 2975A allows for distinctive acts of violence to be treated independently when sentencing, raising the stakes for offenders and bolstering the protections for survivors. Recognizing the severity of such acts, Rep. Dacia Grayber, who came to the table not just as a legislator but as a paramedic with an expertise in strangulation, highlighted that the goal was to protect survivors by ensuring that labels aiding victims don't end up shielding offenders. Grayber's views on the matter reflect her dual roles, giving weight to her support for the bill in her statement, "We should never let a label that's supposed to help victims end up shielding offenders from accountability," as she told the House Democrats.
The collaborative effort behind HB 2975A brought together prosecutors, defense attorneys, the judiciary, and the Department of Justice, leading to a bill that unanimously cleared the House Judiciary Committee. The gravity of this legislative change is perhaps best encapsulated by Rep. Emerson Levy's comments. Speaking with the weight of the law and justice system behind her words, she stressed, "Strangulation victims are 750% more likely to be killed by their abusers. Our legal system must recognize the difference," relaying the chilling statistics that backed the need for change, as reported by the House Democrats. The bill is now poised for debate in the Senate.
