[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 714 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 714

To protect the civil rights of victims of gender-motivated violence and 
  to promote public safety, health, and regulate activities affecting 
   interstate commerce by creating employer liability for negligent 
 conduct that results in an individual's committing a gender-motivated 
crime of violence against another individual on premises controlled by 
                 the employer, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 9, 2005

 Mrs. Maloney introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
   Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the 
Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined 
 by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as 
        fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To protect the civil rights of victims of gender-motivated violence and 
  to promote public safety, health, and regulate activities affecting 
   interstate commerce by creating employer liability for negligent 
 conduct that results in an individual's committing a gender-motivated 
crime of violence against another individual on premises controlled by 
                 the employer, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. NEGLIGENTLY ALLOWING GENDER-MOTIVATED VIOLENCE.

    An employer--
            (1) whose business is in or affects interstate or foreign 
        commerce; and
            (2) whose negligent conduct results in a person's 
        (including a person who acts under color of statute, ordinance, 
        regulation, custom, or usage of any State) committing a crime 
        of violence motivated by gender against another person on 
        premises under the control of the employer;
shall be liable to the party injured, in an action for the recovery of 
compensatory and punitive damages, injunctive and declaratory relief, 
and such other relief as a court may deem appropriate.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act--
            (1) the term ``crime of violence motivated by gender'' 
        means a crime of violence committed because of gender or on the 
        basis of gender; and
            (2) the term ``crime of violence''--
                    (A) means an act or series of acts that would 
                constitute a crime, for which imprisonment of more than 
                one year may be imposed, against the person of another 
                if that crime is a crime of violence as defined in 
                section 16 of title 18, United States Code; and
                    (B) includes any conduct that would constitute a 
                crime described in subparagraph (A) but for the 
                relationship between the person engaging in that 
                conduct and the individual against whom such conduct is 
                directed.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION AND PROCEDURE.

    (a) Limitation.--Nothing in this Act entitles a person to a cause 
of action under section 1 for random acts of violence unrelated to 
gender or for acts that cannot be demonstrated, by a preponderance of 
the evidence, to be motivated by gender.
    (b) No Prior Criminal Action.--Nothing in this section requires a 
prior criminal complaint, prosecution, or conviction to establish the 
elements of a cause of action under section 1.
    (c) Concurrent Jurisdiction.--The Federal and State courts shall 
have concurrent jurisdiction over actions brought pursuant to this Act.

SEC. 4. MATERIALS TO ASSIST EMPLOYERS.

    The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission shall create and 
provide materials to employers regarding personnel policies and safety 
standards to assist employers in avoiding liability under this Act.
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