Latest news with #HouseConcurrentResolution3037
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Dakota legislative committee advances resolution prompted by Holmberg case
Rep. Nico Rios, R-Williston, speaks in favor of a resolution that would make public officials mandatory reporters of child abuse at an April 3, 2025, hearing. (Mary Steurer/North Dakota Monitor) A House committee on Thursday advanced a resolution that advises the 2027 Legislature to make lawmakers mandatory reporters of child abuse. The proposal is sponsored by Rep. Nico Rios, R-Williston, and was drafted by the North Dakota Young Republicans. Rios said the organization is bringing the proposal, House Concurrent Resolution 3037, in light of news surrounding former Republican Sen. Ray Holmberg's prison sentence. A federal judge last week sentenced Holmberg to 10 years in prison after the former senator pleaded guilty to traveling abroad with the intent to have commercial sex with minors. Holmberg served in the state Legislature for more than four decades and held the powerful position of Senate Appropriations Committee chair. Democratic ND senator proposes doubling Ethics Commission budget, citing Holmberg case Rios said the Young Republicans were particularly struck by a sentencing memo filed by a federal prosecutor last month that alleged Holmberg had a pattern of exploiting boys and young men. Mark Friese, Holmberg's defense attorney, denied many of the allegations in the memo and said there's no evidence Holmberg had sex with minors. Rios said that he gets questions from constituents asking whether other public officials in state government knew about Holmberg's conduct but stayed quiet. 'That is why we need mandatory reporting, we should be held to a higher standard,' Rios told the House Political Subdivisions Committee on Thursday morning. Current mandatory reporters of child abuse include medical professionals, social workers, law enforcement and teachers, according to the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services website. The resolution also urges lawmakers to seek additional ways for the state to root out crimes against children by public officials, including by establishing new penalties. The North Dakota Young Republicans suggest that the Legislature consider studying the issue during the upcoming interim session. 'We believe this study can begin to answer the question so many in our state are asking: How did this happen, and more importantly, how can we prevent it from ever happening again?' Derek Turbide, national committeeman for the North Dakota Young Republicans, said in testimony in support of the proposal. The proposal originally contained verses from the Bible, which committee members voted to remove. Some lawmakers also expressed concerns that the resolution ignores systems the state already has in place to combat child exploitation and neglect. 'I would support the study to make legislators mandatory reporters, but I think the rest is unnecessary,' said Rep. Jonathan Warrey, R-Casselton. The committee gave the resolution a do-pass recommendation. The proposal is headed to the House floor for a vote. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hearing set Thursday on North Dakota legislative resolution prompted by Holmberg conviction
Former state Sen. Ray Holmberg, center, arrives at the Quentin N. Burdick U.S. Courthouse in Fargo for a plea hearing in North Dakota U.S. District Court on Aug. 8, 2024. (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor) The North Dakota Young Republicans filed a resolution urging lawmakers to study child exploitation by public officials in wake of former Republican Sen. Ray Holmberg's prison sentence. A federal judge last week sentenced Holmberg to 10 years behind bars after the former senator pleaded guilty to traveling abroad with the intent to have commercial sex with minors. Holmberg was a state lawmaker for over four decades, and held the powerful position of Senate Appropriations Committee chair. House Concurrent Resolution 3037, sponsored by Rep. Nico Rios, R-Williston, asks the statehouse to look for ways to prevent future crimes against children by government officials. Brandon Prichard, chairman of the North Dakota Young Republicans, said the organization decided to propose the resolution after reading a sentencing memo filed by a federal prosecutor last month that alleged Holmberg had a pattern of exploiting boys and young men. Defense attorney Mark Friese denied many of the allegations in the memo and said there's no evidence Holmberg had sex with minors. Former ND Sen. Ray Holmberg sentenced to 10 years in prison for sex crime Prichard said the Young Republicans were appalled by what they read and thought it necessary to take action this session to set the stage for legislative reform down the line. 'We can't fix the world overnight,' said Prichard, a former Bismarck lawmaker. The resolution was passed by the House Delayed Bills Committee last week. It's scheduled for a hearing before the House Political Subdivisions Committee on Thursday at 9 a.m. Testimony can be submitted online until 8 a.m. Thursday. It calls on Legislative Management to research a host of policy changes. The proposal suggests that lawmakers explore mandatory reporting requirements for public officials, for one. It also asks that legislators study creating a body within the Attorney General's Office specifically for investigating allegations of child exploitation by public officials. The proposal recommends looking at instituting stronger penalties for public officials who 'engage in, enable or conceal' crimes against children, as well. This could include creating new mandatory minimum sentences, removal from office, loss of retirement benefits and disqualification from holding public office in the future, it states. The resolution says that the study ought to include a review of what other states have done to address these issues. The study should also examine ways to protect victims, witnesses and whistleblowers who report child exploitation, the proposed resolution states. At the end of the interim session, lawmakers would put together a report including any recommendations and legislative proposals for the 2027 legislative session. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
