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Committee advances bill protecting victims who call police from prosecution if not the 'predominant aggressor'
Summary
House Bill 464 was passed out of committee with an amendment defining 'predominant aggressor' and clarifying immunity for victims who, in good faith, seek law enforcement assistance.
The Georgia House Judiciary Committee voted to advance House Bill 464 on March 6, 2025, a bill intended to provide criminal-justice protections for people who report violent or aggravated crimes. Representative Bell presented the bill, and the committee adopted a definition of “predominant aggressor” before approving the measure.
Representative Bell said the bill “helps protect victims of sexual violence and aggravated violence in general” and aims to ensure that victims who seek police assistance are not prosecuted for related crimes when they are not the predominant aggressor. Representative Hong offered an amendment that added a new subsection defining "predominant aggressor" as the individual who poses the most serious ongoing threat and clarifying that a person who in good faith seeks assistance and is not the predominant aggressor is covered by the immunity.
Committee members discussed whether the new definition and the existing concept of "good faith" were sufficient; one member noted that good-faith standards exist in other criminal-reporting statutes and allow prosecutorial discretion to address bad actors. The Hong amendment passed on voice vote and the committee voted to report the bill to rules as amended.
The committee chair announced the bill would be placed on the rules calendar for further consideration by the full House.
