Latest news with #HB189
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers move to create felony for stalking a minor after Glenrock teen's tearful story
CHEYENNE – Wyoming lawmakers voted Tuesday to draft a bill that would create a felony for an adult charged with stalking a minor with at least a three-year age gap. Stalking is charged as a misdemeanor under current Wyoming law (W.S. 6-2-506), with imprisonment up to one year, a fine up to $750 or both. This charge goes up to a felony when the stalker causes bodily harm, violates a restraining order or violates parole, among other listed reasons. There is no current distinction in state statute for an adult stalking a minor, versus an adult stalking another adult. A Glenrock teenager broke into tears as she advocated for state legislators to create harsher penalties for adults who stalk underaged victims. Gillian Holman, accompanied by her parents, testified in front of the Legislature's Joint Judiciary Committee during its meeting in Torrington. The high schooler told committee members she was harassed and stalked by a 41-year-old woman for the last year and a half. This same woman, Marcie Smith, was found guilty of stalking another Glenrock high school student, Preston Sorensen, according to reporting by the Glenrock Independent. Preston's mother, Brandi, also testified in front of the committee that day. 'My son, a 6-foot-5 champion wrestler who rarely fears anything, froze in fear that night upon hearing a woman's voice outside, believing she had come for him,' Sorensen said. 'He told me he had never been more afraid in his life.' Committee members appeared deeply moved by the anecdotal testimony of the two Glenrock teenagers. Lyman Republican Rep. Joe Webb's voice broke as he addressed Gillian, her parents and Sorensen. Rep. Joe Webb, R-Lyman (2025) Rep. Joe Webb, R-Lyman 'I'm sorry,' Webb said. 'We have a problem in Wyoming. You've made it clear we have the responsibility to correct it.' The director of the Division of Victim Services in the Wyoming Attorney General's Office, Cara Chambers, told the committee House Bill 189, 'Harmful communication-minors,' would have criminalized Smith's behavior as a felony. Rep. Jayme Lien, R-Casper, was the primary sponsor of HB 189 in the recent legislative session. The bill passed through the House of Representatives before it died on the Senate floor. 'Stalking is one of the most nefarious crimes I've had to deal with, honestly,' Chambers said. 'It does so much harm long term to the victims, and (they are) some of the most common indicators of future violence.' During the meeting, Lien successfully moved to draft a second bill related to grooming, modeled after Montana legislation. This bill includes a requirement to register the sex offender upon conviction. Gillian's story In November 2023, mass anonymous text messages were sent to Gillian's fellow high schoolers, with supposed screenshots of Gillian speaking badly about them. In February 2024, her parents received text messages 'from an anonymous number claiming to be a concerned parent,' she said. The messages accused Gillian of engaging in 'inappropriate and sexual behavior' with male students at her school. 'What at first seemed like a simple little text to get me in trouble led to a year of stalking and harassment,' Gillian said. Her parents warned her to be cautious of her surroundings and physical safety. The text messages reached a point at which Gillian feared she would be raped. Police identified Gillian's stalker in October 2024 as Marcie Smith, who is a mother of a fellow high schooler. 'My stalker was in a position of power as a chaperone on a school trip,' Gillian said. 'She used this against me to further scare and intimidate me.' In November 2024, a year after the text messages were first sent out, Gillian was able to get a temporary three-year restraining order. In March, she testified in a criminal trial about what she had been through and how the stalking affected her personal and school relationships. The woman was given two years of unsupervised probation and court-mandated counseling, Gillian said. 'This is what Wyoming's current stalking laws have done,' she said. 'They give room for a 40-year-old to stalk, torment and harass a child and walk away with barely a slap on the wrist.' Gillian thought her life would return to normal after that. But she saw her stalker resume attending basketball games and school events she attended. Gillian said she constantly looked over her shoulder and scanned the room for the woman to show up. This past Sunday, Gillian asked one of her friends to check if her stalker was attending the graduation ceremony, 'because I didn't want to enter the gym until I knew she wasn't there.' 'I'm constantly trying to figure out how I can keep myself safe. It is not easy to continuously share what happened, but I have to at least try,' Gillian said. She broke into tears at this point. 'I have to at least try to make it better for future stalking victims in Wyoming.'
CBS News
08-04-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Maryland Gov. Moore to sign several bills into law following end of 2025 legislative session
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore will sign more than 90 bills into law Tuesday following the end of the 2025 legislative session. When the session got underway in January , lawmakers shared several priorities, including addressing a $3 billion deficit, increasing economic growth, and lowering crime. Of the 94 bills that Gov. Moore will sign on Tuesday, several aim to improve public safety and reduce crime in the state. House Bill 421 and corresponding Senate Bill 36 dictate that the money from the state's 911 Trust Fund be used to support the 988 suicide prevention hotline. HB189 and Senate Bill 187 require the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) to disqualify a person from driving a commercial vehicle for one year if they are found to be driving under the influence of alcohol. House Bill 136 and Senate Bill 199 require that the Governor's Office of Crime Prevention and Policy assume the responsibility of paying a healthcare provider for caring for victims of alleged rape or sexual assault. This used to be the responsibility of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board. House Bill 12 allows the Alcohol, Tobacco and Cannabis Commission to issue citations to individuals who violate a law preventing the sale of certain THC products. Some of the other bills being signed on Tuesday address smaller policy changes. Senate Bill 258 and House Bill 40 change the fee for sport fishing licenses from $20.50 to $32 for residents and from $30.50 to $55 for nonresidents. Another bill, SB196, clarifies that fees collected from electronic transactions are owed to the state rather than a third party. An energy reform legislative package and bills to protect consumers from utility spending are also heading to the governor's desk. The Maryland General Assembly passed the 2026 budget on Sine Die, the final day of the session. The budget included tax and fee increases along with some spending cuts to close the $3.3 billion deficit. "I'm proud of the budget deal we crafted with the Maryland General Assembly to flip the deficit we inherited into a surplus, while ensuring 94% of Marylanders get either an income tax cut or see no change in their income taxes," Gov. Moore said in a statement. "Our expungement bill will provide second chances to more Marylanders, so they can become part of our economic future," the governor added. "We made record investments in education while addressing commonsense adjustments to the Blueprint, which will improve education for all Maryland students." The $67 billion budget creates new tax brackets for the highest earners in the state, which some Republican lawmakers continued to express concerns about. "It's really scary for the six million Marylanders this new budget falls on," said Del. Stuart Schmidt, a Republican from Anne Arundel County. "I mean, the highest tax increase we've ever had in the state of Maryland, it's scary."
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alaska Legislature approves bill allowing teenage alcohol servers at restaurants, breweries
Rep. Zack Fields, D-Anchorage, speaks in favor of Senate Bill 15 on Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in the Alaska House of Representatives. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) The Alaska Legislature has voted to allow teenagers as young as 18 to serve alcohol in the state. On Wednesday, the Alaska House of Representatives voted 32-8 to pass Senate Bill 15, which lowers the minimum alcohol-serving age in restaurants, breweries, wineries, distilleries, resorts and similar businesses. The minimum age to serve alcohol at a bar or sell it at a package store remains 21. A separate provision of the bill requires alcohol-serving businesses to post a sign stating that alcohol causes cancer. Another late-added section also allows members of the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars to attend each other's social clubs. The House's vote follows a 19-0 vote by the Alaska Senate in February and sends the bill back to the Senate for a concurrence vote. That's typically an uncontroversial act that asks the Senate to agree with minor changes to the bill that were made in the House. If the Senate concurs with the House changes, the bill will go to Gov. Mike Dunleavy for final approval. 'I am hopeful for concurrence,' said Sen. Kelly Merrick, R-Eagle River and the bill's sponsor. SB 15 is almost identical to House Bill 189, which passed the Legislature last year. HB 189 was one of five bills vetoed by Dunleavy because they were passed by the House after the legal end of the regular session. 'This one passed literally two minutes after midnight and was vetoed for that reason,' said Rep. Zack Fields, D-Anchorage, who carried the bill on the House floor. Speaking before Wednesday's vote, Fields called SB 15 a 'jobs bill' that will help employers hire for Alaska's busy summer tourist season. Rep. Alyse Galvin, I-Anchorage, spoke in favor of the bill. She worked as a waitress while growing up in Anchorage, and as a teenager, she earned half of what her older coworkers did because she couldn't serve alcohol, she said. 'I was living on my own, paying my own way through college, and I was at Simon and Seafort's and many of the restaurants that you all are familiar with, and because I couldn't serve alcohol, I made much less money, and so I think this gives those of us who are trying to make it on their own an opportunity to make money and also get good training and supervision about how to be safe while serving,' she said. Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, has advocated the cancer-warning section of the bill for three years and spoke in support of that segment. 'This bill is not telling anyone what they should or shouldn't do. It's simply informing Alaskans about a medical fact long established, the simple way to lower your risk of cancer is to choose not to drink alcohol,' he said. None of the bill's opponents spoke against the bill before the final vote. Rep. Sarah Vance, R-Homer, voted in favor of the bill last year but was among the eight 'no' votes in the House this year. Vance said that after thinking about the bill over the past few days, she supports the current over-21 drinking age and doesn't think it makes sense to tell Alaskans that they can serve alcohol but not drink it. 'It felt like we're putting a moral juxtaposition for those in that age range, and it's just not fair,' Vance said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alaska Senate approves 18-year-old alcohol-servers, plus 16-year-old restaurant workers
Sen. Kelly Merrick, R-Eagle River, is seen on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023, during a meeting of the Senate Finance Committee. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) Alaskans as young as 16 will be allowed to work in restaurants, and those as young as 18 will be allowed to serve alcohol if a bill passed Monday by the Alaska Senate becomes law. Senate Bill 15, which passed on a 19-0 vote, advances to the state House for consideration. The bill is almost identical to House Bill 189, which the Legislature passed last year but Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed it. In his veto message, the governor noted that the House passed it after the midnight deadline on the last day of the session. HB 189 was sponsored by Rep. Jesse Sumner, R-Wasilla, who did not seek reelection last year. Sen. Kelly Merrick, R-Eagle River, reintroduced the bill at the start of this session, and it moved quickly through the Senate, becoming the first bill the Senate passed this year. 'Alaskan businesses are asking for relief when it comes to workforce shortages. Many establishments were in support of this bill and they wanted it to get through the Legislature as quickly as possible,' she said. Restaurant and tourist businesses typically staff up during the summer with out-of-state labor or foreign seasonal workers, she said. If SB 15 becomes law, it would allow businesses to hire younger Alaskans instead, Merrick said. Speaking on the House floor, she said there might be some confusion about what it does and doesn't do. 'I want to be clear: Senate Bill 15 does not allow 18- to 20-year-olds to work in bars where alcohol is the primary service,' Merrick said. Instead, those teens can only serve alcohol in places like restaurants, breweries, distilleries and wineries, but not package stores or bars. A 16-year-old might be able to work in a brewery's merchandise store, selling T-shirts, but wouldn't be allowed around alcohol. SB 15 also incorporates a separate measure, from Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, that requires alcohol-selling establishments to post a sign stating that alcohol can cause cancer and is unsafe for pregnant women. No hearings have yet been scheduled in the House. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
