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Senate committee amends bill to broaden criminal definition of sexual torture; survivor advocates take part
Summary
SB 318 was amended to expand the criminal definition of sexual torture to include penetration of the penal opening; sponsor said changes aim to close a gap on the criminal side, and the committee adopted the amendment and advanced the bill.
Senator Coleman introduced SB 318, a bill that would expand the criminal definition of sexual torture to add specific acts that the sponsor said were previously omitted from the criminal definition.
Senator Coleman described collecting survivors’ accounts and said the bill "adds to the definition of crime of sexual torture" to include penetration of the penal opening, a detail the sponsor said was not previously part of the criminal definition. The committee considered and adopted an amendment offered in committee.
Senator Coleman also introduced a guest in the audience, actor Gil Gay, whom she thanked for advocacy on survivors’ issues. "He's using his time and his platform to fight for children in this country," the sponsor said as she introduced him.
Committee members voiced support for advancing the bill as amended. The committee recorded a favorable report on the bill as amended; the transcript reflects the amendment’s adoption and the committee’s motion to give the bill a favorable report.
