New Life For Bill Aimed To Help Missing, Murdered Black Women

During the Mental Health, Substance Abuse Prevention, Children and Families committee hearing on Wednesday, Sen. LaTonya Johnson, Rep. Shelia Stubbs, Sen. Jesse James and Rep. Michael Schraa spoke about the importance of the bill. (Baylor Spears | Wisconsin Examiner)

A bipartisan bill to create a task force on missing and murdered Black women and girls within the Wisconsin Department of Justice advanced a step further in the state Senate on Wednesday.

Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison), who is the lead Assembly author on the bill, called the hearing a “big win,” saying it was a result of the advocacy that she, supporting lawmakers and advocates have done for the bill.

The bill passed the Assembly in February, but it appeared dead last week after Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) said he was opposed to the bill and would not give it a public hearing. On Tuesday, the bill was pulled from the committee Stroebel chairs and forwarded to a committee chaired by the bill’s coauthor Sen. Jesse James (R-Altoona).

During the Mental Health, Substance Abuse Prevention, Children and Families committee hearing on Wednesday, Stubbs, James, Rep. Michael Schraa (R-Oshkosh) and Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) spoke about the importance of the bill and how it could help address the ongoing problem of Black women and girls disappearing and being murdered.

“Wisconsin is facing significantly higher rates of violence towards African American women than the national average, and we need to take action to address this burning issue,” James said. He cited an investigation by the Guardian that found that the homicide rate for Black women and girls increased 33% in 2020. The report found that the rate in Wisconsin doubled that year, making it the state with the highest homicide rate for Black women and girls.

The bill, which was inspired by the Department of Justice’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force, would instruct the attorney general to establish a task force to examine factors that contribute to violence against Black women and girls. The 17-member task force would be required to include Republican and Democratic state legislators, representatives from certain law enforcement organizations, from legal organizations and from groups that provide services to Black women and girls.

The task force would be required to submit a report on actions that could be taken to eliminate violence against Black women and girls to the Legislature by Dec. 15, 2024.

“We know that there is an epidemic plaguing our community,” Johnson said during the hearing. She said the bill would be important for understanding the actual statistics and information about African American women and girls who go missing and/or are murdered, and that the information is necessary to combat the problem.

Johnson also said, however, that “this task force is not just about unearthing more statistics. It’s actually about saving human life. It is about honoring the memory of those who have lost their lives, bringing home those who are missing and protecting those at risk.”

Racine mother Georgia Hill, whose adult daughter Lasheky Hill went missing in March of last year, said during the hearing that she is 100% for passing the bill because she doesn’t want anyone else to have to go through the “nightmare” she is dealing with.

Hill said she still doesn’t know where her daughter is or what happened to her. She said that it’s devastating for her and her daughter’s son, who now lives with her.

Stubbs told reporters after the hearing that her advocacy on the measure is not done.

“Something’s happening in the state of Wisconsin, and it’s just heartbreaking,” Stubbs said.

The Senate committee is scheduled to vote on the measure on Thursday. If it’s approved by the committee, the bill may still face obstacles to passage by the full Senate.

Next week, the Senate is expected to meet for its last floor period of the legislative session, meaning that the bill is likely dead if it isn’t scheduled for a vote then.

Stubbs said that she is “sure” Sen. James will communicate with Senate leadership about what was said about the bill at the hearing and what the committee’s final vote on the bill is. She added that she plans to communicate with other stakeholders and is making calls about the bill.

“Hopefully, leadership on the Senate side, Republican leadership, would see the merits of why this bill needs to be heard. I want to get the bill to Gov. [Tony] Evers’ desk, so that it can be signed into law,” Stubbs said. “It deserves to be signed into law.”

Missing and murdered Black women and girls bill gets public hearing, fate remains uncertain was originally published by Wisconsin Examiner.