New law addresses domestic violence

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) -- A new law kicked in in Connecticut Monday that gives victims of domestic violence a helping hand.

Besides giving police new tools for responding to incidents, that brand new law makes changes to restraining order enforcement.

"They are all trained with the same protocol," said Karen Jarmoc. "There will be a domestic violence liaison in each police department in our state."

Jarmoc, executive director of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, says our state continues to have some of the most progressive domestic violence laws in the country, but there is always need for improvement. Another change centers on protective orders.

"That can actually be put in place for up to a year, previously it was six months in Connecticut," Jarmoc said, "we were behind in that area, we were one in five states that was only limiting it to six months."

With an average of 54,000 domestic violence victims a year in the state, Jarmoc says she and the legislature must keep working, finding ways to lower the abuse and homicide rates that shake families.

"What we're really focusing on now is batterer accountability," said Jarmoc. "There are a lot of fragments and inconsistencies to batterer intervention programs when someone is arrested, what is the response from our judicial system?"

To contact the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence Hotline call 888-774-2900.

Some other new laws went into effect Monday, including legislation concerning the reporting of a missing child. "Caylee's Law" is in response to the high-profile death of Florida toddler Caylee Anthony in 2008. It took more than a month to report the two-year-old girl missing. It is now a misdemeanor to knowingly fail to report the disappearance of a child who is under the age of 12.

Medical marijuana is now legal in Connecticut too. Applicants must be Connecticut residents, at least 18 years of age, and suffer from certain debilitating medical conditions.

Another new law that deals with smoke detectors comes in response to the deadly Christmas day fire in Stamford. The law requires all homes to have smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. Three children and their grandparents died in that Stamford fire last year.