SARA REED for The Coloradoan reports: A bill that would allow vic-tims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking to shield their addresses from their attackers is one step closer to passage by the state Senate.
The bill, which would cre-ate an “address confidentiality program” to allow victims to be assigned a substitute mail-ing address that would be used on public records, was approved by the Senate Judi-ciary Committee late Wednesday afternoon.
The bill, which received only one dissenting vote when it passed the House a week ago, is a much-needed piece of legislation, domestic vio-lence advocates said.
“It is absolutely a matter of life and death (for the vic-tims),” said Rosemarie Fritz, executive director of Alterna-tives to Violence. “They’re at great risk of their abusers stalking them and finding them.”
The program, which would be run by the Secretary of State’s Office, would be open only to victims who, out of fear for their lives, had moved within the previous 90 days or would be moving within 90 days.
The bill will now go to the Senate Appropriations Com-mittee for consideration.