District 79 Representative Dustin Hite says work on the Iowa House Judiciary Committee has included the advancing of bills aimed at protecting victims in a variety of ways. The following have passed committee with bipartisan support and are now available for floor debate, as he wrote in his weekly newsletter:

HF 2079- Post Arrest Release For Certain Sex Abuse Charges
A person charged with 1st, 2nd or 3rd degree sexual abuse will be required to appear before a magistrate before they are released on bail. Additionally, a person charged with these crimes will have a temporary no-contact order entered before they are released on bail.

HF 2160- Assisted Reproduction Assault
Creates the crime of 4th degree sexual abuse if a health care professional uses their own genetic reproductive material without the consent of the patient. This prevents infertility health care professionals from substituting their own genetic material in place of the agreed upon person. Violation is an aggravated misdemeanor and placement on the sex offender registry.

HSB 529- Discovery of Evidence in Sex Abuse Cases
In criminal cases involving victims of sexual abuse, the rules of evidence governing a victim’s past sexual behavior shall also apply to discovery conducted in a criminal or postconviction proceeding, including discovery. Adding this language to the code protects a victim of sexual abuse from having to testify about past sexual behavior in criminal or postconviction actions.