When I ran for office I obviously brought a number of ideas to Frankfort in hopes of doing good work for Kentucky. As you can imagine, these ideas are a product of my life experiences and values. One topic of particular interest to me after my time as a prosecutor is the birth of drug-dependent babies and the drug addiction and drug abuse of expectant mothers.
The 2013 General Assembly Session finished in a whirlwind over the final two days as we worked literally til midnight. But the hard work did have its rewards as several high-profile bills passed.
Sen. Westerfield and Rep. Tilley praisenew human-trafficking law signed today
Frankfort – With Gov. Beshear’s signature this morning of House Bill 3, Kentucky now has an important new tool to tackle human trafficking, state Rep. John Tilley and Sen. Whitney Westerfield said today. As co-chairmen of the General Assembly’s Judiciary Committee, they played influential roles in getting the bill passed unanimously through the House and Senate. Both said it is considered “model” legislation nationally by experts and advocates for the issue. “As we unfortunately saw just earlier this month in a Clarksville, Tenn., case having ties to Hopkinsville, this is a crime that knows no geographic bounds,” said Rep. Tilley, D-Hopkinsville, who was a sponsor of the bill. “This law, however, will go a long way in helping us to fight back while better protecting the victims.” “We’re hearing more and more stories from law enforcement about this crime, which is often referred to as ‘modern-day slavery,’” said Rep. Westerfield, R-Hopkinsville. “With this new law, it will be a lot easier for police officers and prosecutors to go after the traffickers and, hopefully, to keep others from ever coming to Kentucky. We also call on anyone who has information about this crime to report it to the proper authorities.” House Bill 3 builds on earlier law adopted in 2007. Since then, more than 100 human-trafficking victims have been identified across the state, with more than half being children and most being female, according to the Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs. Under the updated law, those charged with human trafficking will now face tougher penalties, including seizure of assets used in the crime and a $10,000 fine that will go into a fund dedicated to helping human-trafficking victims. There also will also be more training to help law enforcement be better prepared in these cases. Human-trafficking victims, meanwhile, will not be charged with crimes they were forced to commit, such as prostitution. Instead, they will be eligible for state services provided by the Cabinet for Health and Human Services. “This is one of this year’s biggest laws, and I’m proud I could play a role,” Rep. Tilley said. “I want to thank Sen. Westerfield for his work as well, because he was key to its passage in the Senate.” Sen. Westerfield said the work on this legislation “shows just what can happen when we work together in a bipartisan way. I’m proud to see it become law and stand ready to do more if we need to.”
I campaigned during 2012 for the Kentucky State Senate saying often that traditional marriage was under attack. Most folks didn't realize at the time what I and other watchers of the law saw coming, the United States Supreme Court was on a collision course with traditional marriage arguments in cases involving California's Proposition 8 (a gay marriage ban) and the Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"). Oral arguments before the Court are this week and a ruling will come in a few months. Traditional marriage protections, including Kentucky's constitutional amendment, are in danger of being ruled unconstitutional and thus struck down. Make no mistake, the battle over marriage is underway and unfortunately, there are many instances where we're losing.
Marriage is a sacred covenant between a man and a woman and God, yet this idea is being torn down and diminished. So many strive to paint such values as discriminatory.
Take this passage from a blog article today:
Pastors in Canada are already facing lawsuits for simply preaching about marriage from the Bible. Tolerance is demanded of Christians but in this pluralistic society, little, if any, tolerance is afforded to Christian beliefs. Christians aren’t the antagonists here, but they do seem to have fewer rights than those engaging in lawfare to bring about forced acceptance.
Read the article here for several examples of this trend: Christians being persecuted for their beliefs which are seen as discriminatory all while the discriminatory work of anti-Christian activists are seen as anything but.
The author of this post nails it and I encourage you to take a look.
I hold out hope that the Court will not strike down laws that the people have chosen in various states to enact, Kentucky included. But as long as God's will keeps me in the State Senate I will continue to advocate for the protection of traditional marriage that represents the relationship and covenant God intended.
