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U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan on Tuesday pushed a measure designed to help victims of domestic and sexual violence, and warned against the bill becoming “a partisan football.”
In a conference call with reporters, Hagan, a Democrat, expressed support for reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act. The bi-partisan measure, fast-tracked by Senate leaders, could face a vote next week.
The bill would reauthorize the act, which funds crisis centers and emergency responders, and would help clear back-logged rape cases. Last year it passed the Senate 68-31 but was blocked in the Republican-controlled House
“The Violence Against Women Act has never been used as a partisan football before,” Hagan said. “We need to get this bill through the Senate, and we need to send a clear message to the House: Anything short of passage is unacceptable.”
Joining Hagan on the call was Sgt. Darrell Price of the Charlotte Mecklenburg police department’s Sexual Assault Cold Case Unit.
Price said passage of the measure would help cut the backlog of rape kits, collections of DNA and other evidence in rape cases.
“It’s becoming more and more of a backlog,” Price said. “It’s a constant, never-ending cycle.”
