Jerry Nadler: “Let's be very clear. Sexual offenses and domestic violence are serious crimes and are already grounds for deportability…”

“Let's be very clear. Sexual offenses and domestic violence are serious crimes and are already grounds for deportability and inadmissibility, as they should be. Unfortunately, this bill is so poorly drafted that it would result in extremely harsh and unintended consequences, including the removal of survivors of domestic violence. This bill attempts to significantly expand the definition of domestic violence to include the Violence Against Women Act definition that is used for grants and funding. This is a much broader definition that was never meant to be used in criminal law. We know that because the definition explicitly says it covers conduct ``that may or may not constitute criminal behavior.'' The definition for domestic violence under Federal criminal law focuses on physical force. This broader VAWA-based definition sweeps in a wider range of behaviors that domestic violence organizations say will implicate survivors who have used violence in self-defense or who were accused by their abusers and were either unable to defend themselves or pled guilty to avoid having to go through the court process. This bill would also make it less likely that immigrant communities will report incidents of domestic violence. We recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of the passage of VAWA, and we should continue our work to combat domestic violence, but this legislation would actually set back our efforts to protect survivors.…”