New Pennsylvania Law Seeks to Aid Abuse Survivors Who Resist - But Is It Enough?

"The law is meant to offer hope to people who are facing long sentences for crimes related to their victimization: women who kill their abusers, for instance, or victims of sex trafficking who harm the people who have trafficked them. These people are often referred to as criminalized survivors, recognizing their dual status as victims and defendants. Similar laws have already been passed in California, Illinois, New York, Georgia, and Oklahoma and proposed in several other states."

"As a Maryland-based attorney who represents criminalized survivors of violence, I'm a pragmatist - I'll use any tool available to try to free my clients from the trauma, violence, and deprivation that are the hallmarks of the American prison system. And as an advocate, I've worked with others to get these laws passed. Such legislation is a step toward ensuring that survivors of violence are not doubly punished - first by their partners or abusers, then by the criminal legal system."

Pennsylvania lawmakers have proposed legislation allowing people convicted of crimes committed while resisting abuse to request shorter sentences and enabling those serving long terms for violence-related offenses to seek resentencing. The law targets criminalized survivors, including women who kill abusers and trafficking victims who harm traffickers. Several states, including California, Illinois, New York, Georgia, and Oklahoma, have enacted similar laws. Legal advocates and defense attorneys use these statutes to pursue resentencing and release for survivors subjected to trauma and deprivation in prison. The reforms aim to prevent double punishment, but resentencing often only reduces time served rather than eliminating punishment.

Read at Truthout