Call Senator Zirkin to bring HB782 to a vote. Maryland must do the right thing for victims.

From

The Human Trafficking Prevention Project:

Despite overwhelming support for the True Freedom Act spurred on by an agreement on amendments between the advocates and the Maryland State’s Attorney’s Association, the True Freedom Act of 2019 has yet to be brought up for a vote in the Judicial Proceedings.  As a reminder, Maryland ranked dead last in a national survey of criminal record relief laws published by Polaris, coverage of which can be found in the Baltimore Sun and the Washington Post.  Additionally, the Baltimore Sun Editorial Staff recently published their own op-ed in support of the True Freedom Act, stating that, “[e]ight years ago, Maryland lawmakers tried to do the right thing for victims — now they should finish the job.”

That leads me to my ask of you today:  We need to amp up the pressure on Chairman Zirkin to bring HB 782 up for a vote in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee tomorrow!  I’m asking everyone to call the Judicial  Proceedings Committee TODAY – Thursday, April 4th – to ask Chairman Bobby Zirkin to put House Bill 782 on tomorrow’s voting list!  The phone number is (410) 841-3131.  Here is a sample script you can use (If you are a member of District 11, which is Chairman Bobby Zirkin’s district, please mention this when you call!  You can figure that out here: www.mdelect.net): 

Hello, my name is _____.  I am calling to request that House Bill 782 be brought up for a vote tomorrow.  HB 782 will allow criminalized survivors to truly be free from their traffickers and will also elevate Maryland out of last place in the country in terms of the relief it offers for criminalized survivors.  Eight years ago, Maryland lawmakers tried to do the right thing for victims — now they should finish the job. Thank you in advance for bringing House Bill 782 forward for a vote!”