Let’s start with the facts of this story first.
The mayor and city council of Topeka, the capital of Kansas, voted this week to repeal the city’s ordinance on domestic violence. This has caused victims of domestic violence and domestic violence victim advocates to become both scared and in anger. It’s being said that the intent of the move is:
to force the county’s district attorney to back away from a budget-driven decision to stop prosecuting misdemeanors committed inside the city limits — including domestic assault and battery not involving a weapon.
It’s being said by the heads of the city that they can’t afford to create services for victims and rent space for suspects. And now, the choice quotes from the article to show why maybe some forethought should’ve gone into writing it (like this post’s title):
Advocates for victims of abuse slammed all sides of the debate.
“It’s a slam in our face,” Claudine Dombrowski, an abuse survivor from Topeka, told the council.
And the coup de gras:
“Just the fact that it was on our agenda gave us a black eye,” said City Councilwoman Denise Everhart, one of the three votes against repealing the ordinance.
Maybe some quotes need to be reworded? Just maybe?