People convicted of domestic violence can hold public office in PA. Conklin aims to change that
Rep. Scott Conklin, D-Rush Township, will introduce a piece of legislation that would bar individuals convicted of domestic violence related crimes from holding public office in Pennsylvania, as Centre County recognizes April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
During a press conference Monday, he announced the legislation with Centre Safe’s executive director Anne Ard and Laura Shadle, who works for Conklin and is a survivor of sexual and domestic violence.
Shadle said passing this legislation is necessary for Pennsylvania to continue to fight to reduce rates of domestic violence. The state needs legislators with integrity to act for the good of the public, she said.
“Legislators who ... themselves have been convicted of domestic violence related crimes cannot be trusted to act ethically on behalf of domestic violence victims,” Shadle said.
Conklin said there are some elected officials across the state who have been convicted of domestic violence; he said those individuals are threatening, toxic and lack boundaries.
“What type of individual commits domestic violence? What type of individual would ... do harm to someone that they say they love? I don’t believe that type of individual should be serving as a legislator to make laws,” Conklin said.
Pennsylvania’s constitution prohibits people “convicted of embezzlement of public moneys, bribery, perjury or other infamous crime” from serving in the General Assembly. Conklin’s domestic violence ethical integrity legislation would make domestic violence convictions a disqualifying offense.
Domestic violence is an important issue to Conklin and one that has impacted him. He spoke of multiple people whose lives were either taken or impacted by domestic violence, including family friend Traci Raymond Miscavish. She was killed by her estranged husband, a retired state trooper, in Clearfield County in 2014.
In Pennsylvania it is estimated that one in four women and one in seven men experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner. At least 109 people have died as a direct result of domestic violence in the last year.
“Think about that the next time you’re in a large group, a gathering, maybe it’s a party or football game, maybe it’s a religious worship service. Look around you and think, ‘one in every four women in this room. One in every seven men in this room is or will be a victim of intimate partner violence in some form.’ When you think about it that way, the impact is staggering. It’s a staggering plague on our community,” Ard said.
Centre Safe provided services to over 1,500 survivors of sexual and domestic violence last year, she said. The need is great, she said, but it’s a need that the community can respond to. She said people should listen to — and believe — survivors when they confide in them, offer support and know what resources are available, like Centre Safe. Centre Safe’s 24/7 hotline number for anyone experiencing sexual or domestic violence is 1-877-234-5050.
“It’s important to know about those resources, but it’s also important to offer your own personal support. To say to a survivor, ‘let me go with you when you go to Centre Safe,’ say ‘let me sit by you when you make that call’, because what is most critical is to support that community, for survivors to actually be able to move forward,” Ard said.
