Detroit Evening Report: Michigan House bills seeking to increase rights for sexual assault victims gets hearing
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Michigan House of Representatives chamber.
A pair of Michigan bills aimed at supporting survivors of sexual assault received a hearing on Tuesday before the state House Criminal Justice Committee.
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House Bill 4488, introduced by state Rep. Christine Morse (D-Texas Township) in April 2023, would give sexual assault survivors the right to have a support person and a lawyer with them during any investigation interviews. Additionally, House Bill 4490 — introduced in April by state Rep. Jennifer Conlin (D-Ann Arbor) — would allow survivors to take a free shower at a hospital, if one is available, after undergoing a sexual assault evidence kit.
Conlin says the bills are about treating survivors with dignity.
“The hospital experience is already traumatizing enough. We should allow individuals to wash themselves clean of the crimes that were committed against them,” said Conlin.
Both bills remain in committee.
Other headlines for Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024:
- Detroit’s chief financial officer says the city will collect almost $1.3 billion for the fiscal year ending June 30. He also projects a 3% increase in revenues for 2025.
- A fire severely damaged the old McCarthy’s Music Venue on Fort Street in Detroit.
- The Lansing City Council unanimously passed a resolution on Monday night calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel.
- Detroit’s Historic Designation Advisory board is starting a new study of the city’s Arab and Chaldean communities.
- The Michigan Science Center will be screening the documentary “God Said Give ‘em Drum Machines” next weekend.
- Detroit education advocacy organization 482Forward is inviting the community to bring their questions, concerns and appetites to meet with elected officials at its next Lunch and Learn event, taking place from noon to 3:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23 at the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation, 1211 Trumbull St., Detroit.
- Registration is open for Soccer in the D’s Spring League, a program for 3- to 14-year-olds run through Detroit’s Parks and Recreation Department. The season starts April 20 and ends in early June. Register at dprdathlethics.com.
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