Unchained’s law to protect domestic violence survivors and all crime victims in New Jersey goes into effect today.
Today nearly 80 people joined Unchained to Celebrate a Legislative Victory.
Honoree: LORETTA WEINBERG • New Jersey Senate Majority Leader
Sponsor of the bill Unchained wrote to help domestic violence survivors, which has been signed into law
Featured speaker: AMY RICHARDS • Feminist, activist, author
Founder of Third Wave Foundation and Soapbox Author of Manifesta, Grassroots and Opting In
The celebration included hors d’oeuvres, wine, live music and a silent auction.
Domestic violence survivors in New Jersey who ask a judge for a final restraining order typically need to prove they have been subjected to a pattern of abuse that is likely to recur. The best way for them to prove that pattern is to show copies of the prior temporary restraining orders they have obtained against their abusers and the accompanying police reports.
However, crime victims previously were required to pay for their own crime records. That was an unfair and unnecessary burden to put on a crime victim.
Also, a victim’s request for crime records itself previously became a public record that nearly anyone, including the abuser, could access. That obviously could have put a victim in additional danger.
Unchained therefore wrote the new law, which says that:
– A crime victim no longer needs to pay for her/his own crime records, and
– A crime victim’s request for her/his own records no longer is public.
Independent Sources, a CUNY TV show, featured Unchained At Last tonight. The segment focused on the law Unchained wrote to help domestic violence survivors, which recently was passed in New Jersey — and which Unchained now is working to pass in New York.
What do gold-and-sapphire bees and tickets to the Tony Award-winning Broadway show Pippin have in common?
They are both among more than 25 items you can win in Unchained’s silent auction, which will culminate on October 19, at Unchained At Last’s Celebrate a Legislative Victory event.
But whether or not you plan to attend the event, you can NOW place bids online for the auction — and win a cut-and-color at Frederic Fekkai’s salon in SoHo or anautographed copy of Adam Driver on the cover of GQ Magazine, while you help women and girls flee or resist arranged/forced marriages.
Don’t let someone else win the Date Night in Montclair, NJ. Click HERE to visit the auction site now.
Two nights at an award-winning bed and breakfast on Martha’s Vineyard. Tickets to the New York Philharmonic. Estee Lauder cosmetics and perfume, and Ann Taylor jewelry and accessories. An Xbox One. A limited-edition photograph by an award-winning photographer, created exclusively for Unchained.
You can win all these and much more — and help women in forced marriages – if you join the Celebrate a Legislative Victory auction.
You are invited to Celebrate a Legislative Victory on Sunday, October 19, from 4:00 pm to 6:30 pm, in Montclair, New Jersey.
Honoring Loretta Weinberg, New Jersey Senate Majority Leader and sponsor of the law Unchained wrote to help domestic violence survivors. The law was passed in New Jersey in July.
Featuring Amy Richards, feminist, activist, author, founder of Third Wave Foundation and Soapbox and author of Manifesta, Grassroots and Opting In.
Hors d’oeuvres. Wine. Live music. Silent auction.
Tickets: $75
Sponsorships: $300, $500 or $1,000
For each ticket purchased, $60 is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Domestic violence survivors in New Jersey who ask a judge for a final restraining order typically need to prove they have been subjected to a pattern of abuse that is likely to recur. The best way for them to prove that pattern is to show copies of the prior temporary restraining orders they have obtained against their abusers and the accompanying police reports.
However, crime victims previously were required to pay for their own crime records. That was an unfair and unnecessary burden to put on a crime victim.
Also, a victim’s request for crime records itself previously became a public record that nearly anyone, including the abuser, could access. That obviously could have put a victim in additional danger.
Unchained therefore wrote the new law, which says that:
Details about the law are here.
Unchained is the only nonprofit in the US dedicated to helping women leave and avoid arranged/forced marriages and rebuild their lives.
Many communities in the US practice arranged/forced marriage, and often the women and girls who try to resist or leave those marriages are stymied by religious laws, social customs and financial constraints. Often, too, their families and communities shun them.
In two years, with an almost all-volunteer staff (except a paid part-time social worker), Unchained has helped or is helping more than 85 women and girls to resist or leave arranged/forced marriages. Nearly all of those women and girls are domestic violence survivors — which is why Unchained wrote the new law.
Ma’yan, which provides feminist, social justice and leadership training to teen girls, today published an interview with Unchained’s founder. Read the interview here.
The Wall Street Journal today ran an important story about formerly Orthodox Jewish fighting for parental rights. The story included a quote from Unchained’s executive director about the struggles such parents face.
Click here for the story, titled “Formerly Orthodox, and Struggling for Parental Rights.”
Congratulations! Today New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed into law the first bill Unchained wrote.
The law is written broadly enough to help all crime victims, but it is intended in particular to help domestic violence survivors obtain a final restraining order against their abuser — because many Unchained clients are domestic violence survivors. Details about the bill are here.
If you were one of the more than 1,000 people who helped get the law passed — by signing the online petition, contacting legislators or the governor, testifying about the legislation or offering input or encouragement — you have Unchained’s permission to pat yourself on the back and grin. Thank you.
A generous grant from the Jewish Women’s Foundation will allow Unchained to continue helping women and girls leave or resist arranged/forced marriages.
Details here.
Unchained’s founder and executive director, Fraidy Reiss, was featured today on NPR’s Sunday Conversation with Rachel Martin.
Fraidy talked about how she entered an arranged marriage when she was 19, only to find out a week after her wedding that her husband was violent. She described being trapped in her abusive marriage for 12 years before she managed to earn a college degree at age 32 and leave with her two daughters — a process that led her family to declare her dead. And she explained how her experience motivated her to found Unchained At Last and help other women and girls avoid or leave arranged/forced marriages.
If you missed it, or if you want to hear it again, click here.
The New Jersey Senate today unanimously approved Unchained’s bill, which helps domestic violence survivors and all crime victims.
The New Jersey Assembly already approved the bill in May, so the measure now heads to the governor’s desk. The governor has 45 days to sign it into law — and you can help make that happen. Details below.
About the Bill
Domestic violence survivors in New Jersey who ask a judge for a final restraining order typically need to prove they have been subjected to a pattern of abuse that is likely to recur. The best way for them to prove that pattern is to show copies of the prior temporary restraining orders they have obtained against their abusers and the accompanying police reports.
However, currently crime victims must pay for their own crime records. This is an unfair and unnecessary burden.
Also, a victim’s request for crime records itself becomes a public record that nearly anyone, including the perpetrator, can access. This obviously can put a victim in additional danger.
Unchained’s bill, S1524/A1676, therefore says that:
Click here for details about S1524/A1676.
Your Help Needed
You can help turn this bill into law. Please email Gov. Chris Christie or call him at (609) 292-6000 and urge him to sign it. And if you have not already done so, show your support by signing Unchained’s petition on change.org.
If you want to help get similar legislation passed in another state, contact Unchained.
