Rep. Dafna Michaelson Jenet, one of the bill’s sponsors, said when lawmakers killed the bill last year as the pandemic took hold, it was devastating.
The Commerce City Democrat is a sexual assault survivor. She was first abused when she was 7 years old, and it took her more than 30 years to tell others.
“For survivors, it is an affirmation that we are putting into law that we believe you and that we will hear you out and that we won’t shut you down before you have had an appropriate opportunity to heal before you are ready to come forward,” she said of the bill finally passing.
She added that many of the advocates who have been pushing for this bill for decades won’t be able to benefit from it, but it will protect others moving forward. Colorado will join at least a dozen other states who have enacted similar legislation.
“It’s really a mix of emotions,” Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault Policy Director Raana Simmons said of the bill signing. “This is a policy concept that I inherited, and I’m the third policy director at CCASA on this bill.”
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