A bill that Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo calls the most comprehensive overhaul of the state's domestic violence laws in a generation is expected to come up for a vote at the Statehouse.
DeLeo said the measure before the House today was spurred by the stabbing death of Jennifer Martel last summer. Jared Remy, the son of Red Sox broadcaster Jerry Remy, has pleaded not guilty in the case.
The bill would toughen penalties for domestic battery suspects. It would also require judges to receive more training around domestic violence issues.
The proposal would also mandate that a suspect in a domestic violence case be held for at least six hours before bail can be posted, to allow time for a safety plan to be developed for the alleged victim.
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