Stephanie Deeley
Guest Columnist
On Wednesday, March 17, the House passed the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization. It now moves to the Senate.
First passed in 1994, it expired in 2018. However, the need for this Act did not in any way diminish that year, or in any year since.
According to a report from the State (MA) Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team in 2019, there are on average 44,000 Protective Orders filed per year in Massachusetts.
That same report states that since 2016 an average of 23,000 violations per year are recorded in Massachusetts of restraining orders/violation of harassment orders/assault or battery on a household member.