(May 2015) State Senator Joseph Griffo recently announced that the Senate has passed legislation he co-sponsored that will further protect women and children from domestic violence by creating a publicly accessible registry of convicted violent felons.
The Domestic Violence Prevention Act – also known as Brittany’s Law (S513) – would require all individuals convicted of a violent felony to register with the New York State Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) upon their release from prison. The registry would be accessible to the public, similar to the Sexual Offender Registry that the State currently has in place, and would also establish annual registration requirements for offenders to allow local law enforcement agencies and the State to monitor their whereabouts.
In November 2009, 12-year-old Brittany Passalacqua was brutally murdered with her mother, Helen Buchel, at their home in Geneva. Brittany’s Law is named to honor their memories, and the memory of countless other victims across our state and region. In the case of Brittany and her mother Helen, their killer, John Edward Brown, was a violent convicted felon who had been released early from prison after serving only 2 ½ years of his sentence for assaulting his infant daughter in 2003. Brown had only been on parole for a few months before committing the murders.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Michael Nozzolio, R-Seneca Falls, has been referred to the Assembly for its consideration (A1833).
“The tragic death of Brittany Passalacqua – and the horrific mutilation of Andrew Lesperance of Massena – underscores the need for a registry of violent offenders,” said Senator Joseph Griffo, R-C-I, of Rome. “We have an obligation to protect families from people who have already proven how dangerous and violent they can be. New York State currently has a statewide Sex Offender Registry that has helped protect many people from repeat offenders, and we would expect the same from a violent offender database.”
Griffo added, “Brittany’s Law will bring positive change out of tragedy by providing families the information they need to know who is living in their neighborhood. I thank Senator Nozzolio for his leadership on this bill, and urge my Assembly colleagues to join us in passing this important piece of legislation.”
The State Senate has adopted Brittany’s Law every year since 2011, but the New York City-controlled leadership of the State Assembly has repeatedly refused to bring this important legislation to the floor for a vote. Senator Griffo and Senator Nozzolio have continued their efforts to see the measure enacted into law by working with law enforcement officials, crime victims’ advocates and Brittany Passalacqua’s family.
Brittany’s grandmother, Dale Driscoll, remarked: “Words cannot express the gratitude my family and I have for Senator Nozzolio and his dedication and commitment to seeing ‘Brittany’s Law’ adopted into law. The murder of my daughter and granddaughter devastated our family. If this legislation prevents another family from suffering the loss we have experienced, then my daughter and granddaughter will not have died in vain. People should have the right to know if a person is a violent felon, and I will continue to do everything I can to push this measure in the State Assembly.”