SLS 22RS-3193 ORIGINAL
2022 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 145
BY SENATOR BARROW
LEGIS POWERS/FUNCTIONS. Creates a task force relative to admissibility of expert
testimony for victims of domestic violence under certain circumstances.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To create and provide for the Task Force on Expert Testimony for Justification Defense.
3 WHEREAS, the Legislature of Louisiana has committed to preventing the wrongful
4 conviction of survivors of domestic violence, intimate partner violence, and sexual violence;
5 and
6 WHEREAS, society and the legal system have historically lagged in understanding
7 the dynamics of domestic violence; and
8 WHEREAS, instead, there is a stereotype perpetuated against these victims that they
9 must fight back in order to be a "victim" under the law; and
10 WHEREAS, the Louisiana Supreme Court, in State v. Curley, exonerated a woman
11 on defense counsel's failure to investigate and present expert testimony of "battered woman's
12 syndrome"; and
13 WHEREAS, Louisiana laws do not take into account the dynamics of intimate
14 partner violence where an abuser coerces a victim to participate in criminal activity after
15 long-term abuse and manipulation; and
16 WHEREAS, survivors are then left without a meaningful choice whether to
17 participate in the criminal activity, but the appropriate defense is also unavailable to them;
18 and
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SLS 22RS-3193 ORIGINAL
1 WHEREAS, the Survivor Informed Task Force, a multi-disciplinary organization,
2 issued a report, but did not fully explore how to enact laws to allow victims to present a
3 sufficient defense in criminal cases.
4 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
5 does hereby establish and provide for the Task Force on Expert Testimony for Justification
6 Defense to study the admissibility of expert testimony relative to a victim-defendant whose
7 actions were the result of intimate partner violence, sexual violence, human trafficking, or
8 domestic violence, and to propose recommendations, together with specific proposals for
9 legislation.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force should include in its study
11 consideration of introduction of expert testimony by a defendant who is also a victim of
12 intimate partner violence, human trafficking, domestic violence, or sexual violence.
13 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall consist of the following
14 members:
15 (1) The senator for Senate District 15, who shall serve as chairperson of the study
16 commission.
17 (2) The executive director of the Louisiana District Attorneys Association, or his
18 designee.
19 (3) The state public defender, or his designee.
20 (4) A representative of the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers,
21 appointed by the president of the board of directors.
22 (6) A representative of Sexual Trauma Awareness and Response, designated by the
23 president of the organization.
24 (7) A representative of Voice of the Experienced (V.O.T.E.), appointed by the
25 executive director.
26 (8) A representative of the Promise of Justice Initiative, designated by the president
27 of the board of directors.
28 (9) A member from the Justice and Accountability Center of Louisiana, appointed
29 by the board of directors.
30 (10) A representative of the judicial community, appointed by the chief justice of the
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SLS 22RS-3193 ORIGINAL
1 Louisiana Supreme Court.
2 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each designating authority shall submit the
3 names of designees to the study commission to the chairperson, no later than July 1, 2022.
4 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the task force shall convene for its first meeting no
5 later than September 1, 2022, at the call of the chairperson, and at the first meeting, the
6 members shall elect other officers as the task force may deem appropriate.
7 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a majority of the task force shall constitute a
8 quorum for the transaction of business, and all official actions of the task force shall require
9 the affirmative vote of a majority of the members.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of the task force shall serve
11 without compensation, except per diem or expenses reimbursement to which they may be
12 individually entitled as members of their constituent organizations.
13 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall make a written report of its
14 finding and recommendations, together with any specific proposals for legislation, to the
15 Senate, and the to the David R. Poynter Legislative Research Library as required by R.S.
16 24:771 and 772, no later than March 15, 2023.
17 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall terminate on the date of the
18 submission of its report or March 15, 2023, whichever occurs first.
19 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
20 Louisiana District Attorneys Association, the State Public Defender Board, the Louisiana
21 Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Sexual Trauma Awareness and Response, Voice
22 of the Experienced, the Promise of Justice Initiative, the Justice and Accountability Center
23 of Louisiana, and the Louisiana Supreme Court.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Whitney Kauffeld.
DIGEST
SR 145 Original 2022 Regular Session Barrow
Establishes the Task Force on Expert Testimony for Justification Defense.
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