DC Officials Outline Legislation to Protect Domestic Violence Survivors, Crack Down on Abusers D.C. officials are advancing a new legislative package aimed at enhancing protections for domestic violence survivors and imposing stricter penalties on perpetrators. The proposed legislation, known as the Protecting Victims Act of 2026, was announced by Mayor Muriel Bowser alongside U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro. The bill seeks to strengthen enforcement of court orders, increase pretrial detention for domestic violence offenders, improve accountability for abusers, and safeguard the privacy of victims and survivors. Key provisions of the act include classifying repeat violations of temporary and civil protection orders as felonies. It also grants courts greater authority to detain individuals charged with domestic violence offenses and designates unlawful entry into a home to commit assault as a felony. A new crime will be created for offenses committed in the presence of a child, a measure Pirro emphasized as critical to addressing the long-term trauma inflicted on children exposed to domestic violence. Pirro highlighted the absence of a specific charge for domestic violence cases involving children, stating, “We’ve got to make that a crime, because there is no question that the consequences are long-term in terms of that child learning that violence is the only way to resolve conflict in their lives based upon what they are seeing between their parents or intimate partners.” She also called for enhanced sentencing for offenders who strangle their partners, noting that her office has filed 90 felony strangulation cases so far in 2026 and expects to file 360 by year’s end. Pirro pointed out that while strangulation was reclassified as a felony under the Secure D.C.#jeanine_pirro #d_c #muriel_bowser #protecting_victims_act_2026 #d_c_safe
