CNN: Bipartisan bill aims to protect rape victims from custody battles with their attackers

Washington, DC, July 26, 2013

A federal bipartisan bill aims to protect rape victims from custody battles with their attacker.

The "Rape Survivor Child Custody Act" would allow victims to terminate the parental rights of their rapists.

Florida congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the bill's sponsor.

"This bipartisan legislation encourages states to pass laws that allow women to petition for the termination of parental rights based on clear and convincing evidence that a child was conceived through rape," said Wasserman Schultz.

Pennsylvania congressman Tom Marino said, "if states enact such legislation, they will be eligible for additional grants that will improve law enforcement response to violent crimes and increase prosecution of violent crimes against women, including crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence."

Only six states currently have laws that give women access to legal options to avoid custody battles with their rapists.