Issue Position: Public Safety

Issue Position

As a vocal advocate for supporting our men and women in Public Safety positions, I will continue to ensure their health and safety on the job and continue to advocate for mental health services for PTSD, and eliminate penalties for officers who have PTSD to come forward to get help.

I will re-introduce my bill last year to protect children by requiring schools be notified that a contractor (ie bus driver or outside vendor) has been arrested for crimes against children, in direct response to a Southington bus driver's arrest for molesting a minor over a period of eight years. This passed the House, but ran out of time to be called in the Senate.

Additionally, I will work to impose realistic penalties on chronic youth offenders who are a danger to public safety, and also ensure they receive rehabilitation to become a productive member of society upon release.

In 2017 and 2018, I authored and passed two bills on public safety: the first is Logan's Law, which trains police officers on important safety procedures focusing on contact with individuals on the autism spctrum. For example, those with ASD often have a high tolerance for pain, which means traditional methods of restraint could be deadly. This training teaches officers how to effectively communicate and ensure the safety of those on the spectrum, with an additional focus on finding children who wander. I also authored a part of the 2017 Human Trafficking legislation, and created a new law of Commercial Sexual Abuse of A Minor, a felony, to protect our kids from predators.

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