BOSTON, May 18, 2016—Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley is lending his support to a bill that would presume a man convicted of rape to be unfit to have custody of any child conceived as a result of the offense.

If passed, HD4590 – known as “An Act Protecting Rape Victims and Children Conceived in the Assault” – would create a legal presumption that it is not in the best interests of the child for the convicted rapist to have sole or shared custody of the child or visitation rights. The bill was filed by Rep. Michelle DuBois of Brockton.

The bill would require any judge overruling that presumption to issue written findings of fact that such custody or visitation would be in the best interest of the child, and only with the rape victim’s approval.

“More than almost any other offense prosecuted by my office, crimes of sexual violence exact a lasting physical, psychological, and emotional toll on their victims,” Conley wrote in testimony to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary. “When such a crime leaves the victim pregnant, the victim should not face an additional battle to protect herself and her child from further contact with the rapist in our state’s family courts. Sexual assault is a violent crime, and its perpetrators should not have legal parity with loving and supportive family members.”

Conley pointed to a 1996 study by the National Institute of Justice, which found that the average cost of rape and sexual assault per victim was $87,000 per year, making it the costliest to offense for its victims.

“These victims should not also have to shoulder the additional burden and endure the additional victimization of retaining civil counsel should their rapists seek custody or visitation rights in Family and Probate Court,” Conley wrote.

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All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt