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would have more clearly defined who is protected. The House and Senate could not agree on whether same-sex couples should be protected by the domestic abuse laws. The measure recommended Monday by the study committee does not limit coverage to couples of the opposite sex.
• Committee members said they wrote their proposals with language aimed at gathering broad support from the Legislature.
• The proposals also make it clear domestic abuse can occur between a parent and a child.
• Another proposal endorsed by the committee would create an additional misdemeanor crime for anyone who commits domestic abuse in the presence of a child. Except in certain circumstances, judges would be expected to impose a jail sentence that would be served after an abuser's sentence for assault or other crime of violence.
• Rep. Mike Stevens, R-Yankton, said the legislative package seeks to protect children in abusive families and teach them "there's a better way of doing things."
• South Dakota doesn't have a stand-alone crime of domestic abuse. Instead, people are charged with assault or other crimes with a tag added to indicate when an offense involved domestic abuse. That tag, or notation, allows victims to get protection orders against those who have hurt them and can also help them qualify for other programs that provide financial assistance to victims.
• Committee members said they believe their proposals make needed improvements to South Dakota's domestic abuse laws.
• "We are raising the bar on what it means to have a fair and just South Dakota," said Sen. Deb Soholt, R-Sioux Falls, the panel's chair.
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• SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- A fellowship gathering is scheduled in Sioux Falls in honor of the 2-year-old son of Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
• Friends and family plan to remember 2-year-old Tyrese Ruffin Tuesday evening at First Evangelical Free Church.
• He died this month two days after being hospitalized with severe head injuries.
• Investigators say 27-year-old Joseph Robert Patterson assaulted the boy while the two were alone in a Sioux Falls apartment. Patterson is the boyfriend of Tyrese's mother.
• A Lincoln County grand jury has indicted Patterson on second-degree murder and manslaughter charges and he's expected to be arraigned later this week.
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