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Abstract: 

This original and powerfully stated treatise brings together testimony given to the New York State Legislature in October, 2019 by four stellar figures in the protective mothers’ movement. These testimonials—provided by Jacqueline Franchetti, Meredith Lee Price, Robin Lynch, and Jennifer Friedman—collectively reflect the depth of the wisdom accumulated by their combined decades of advocacy work on behalf of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens: battered mothers and their children. These women well know of the high stakes involved in this fight—especially Jacqueline Franchetti, whose daughter, Kyra, was murdered by her abusive father, prompting Jacqueline to become a leading light in the struggle for reform. [Jacqueline has been directly involved in the formulation of several pieces of legislation proposed to the NYS Legislature. These include Kyra’s Law (A5398); a second bill to reforming supervised visits (A3314), and a third bill addressing training for forensic evaluator (A2375).] The pleas contained in the present testimonials are hardly new; advocates have been crying out for reform of family law statutes since at least the 1980s, if not earlier. This piece, prepared exclusively for FIPVQ, provides the almost-verbatim rendition of what the New York state legislative body heard from four individuals whose experience, expertise, and credibility in these matters render them ideal spokespersons for the cause of protective mothers.

Keywords: Child Custody; Domestic Violence Survivors

Affiliations:  .