History of abuse will factor in sentencing some defendants under new Georgia law

“When we left, we didn’t have a place to live, couldn’t afford hotels, living in the car — and I had six babies,” she said. “I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know about (domestic violence) shelters then. So I chose to steal to get us a place to live.”

A new law taking effect July 1 will require judges to consider the ways a defendant’s history of being abused, like in Butler’s case, could lead to them breaking the law when assigning a sentence.

The law passed the Georgia General Assembly with only three out of 236 lawmakers voting against it. That says something, Ellie Williams, an attorney with the Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said.

“We had such broad and strong bipartisan support,” she said. “I think that just sends out a really strong message about how we, as a community, feel about criminalizing survivors and that everybody agrees that that’s not the way we should be handling things. The system needed to change.”

Williams estimates that there are about 300 people in prison who would benefit from the change in sentencing policy.

Under the new law, defense attorneys will be allowed to enter evidence of their client’s abuse as their legal defense or to seek a lower sentence. The new law will also allow those who are currently serving time in prison to petition the court for a resentencing hearing.

During a hearing on House Bill 582, House Judiciary Chair Stan Gunter said the legislation is an opportunity for someone who has been sentenced to present evidence of past abuse.

“For people that have been convicted and sent to prison, and this evidence was never given to the court because the defendant … didn’t know that they had evidence like this that could help them,” the Blairsville Republican and bill sponsor said. “This is not a ‘get out of jail free’ card. This is a reduction in the sentence.”

Under the new law, if convicted defendants can prove they were a victim of family violence, dating violence or child abuse and that the abuse played a significant factor in the crime committed, it would lead to a lesser sentence. The law instructs the court to hand down a sentence between 10 and 30 years for felony crimes that carry the death penalty or life in prison, such as murder or aggravated sexual battery.

For other felony convictions, the court would issue a sentence of no less than a year but not more than half the maximum penalty possible for the offense. For example, someone convicted of 10 or fewer counts of credit card fraud would be sentenced to as little as one year in prison or as much as 14 months. That offense typically carries a sentence of between 18 to 28 months.

Butler was released last year after serving seven years in prison. She will spend the rest of her sentence on probation unless her petition for resentencing goes her way.

“I’m home, but I’m not free,” she said.

Butler cannot leave the state without first getting permission, and she has experienced difficulty getting and keeping a job because of her probationary status. Had the new law been in effect when she was convicted, Butler said she would be nearly — if not completely — finished serving her sentence.

“What that says to me is, I’m still an inmate. I’m still a criminal,” she said. “When you really, really look at it, you’re not free.”