Florida House Candidate and HAVEN Bill Founder Speaks After Governor Signs Law
Florida House of Representatives District 22 candidate Amy Trask’s bill, the Helping Abuse Victims Escape Now (HAVEN) Act, was signed into Florida law by Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday.
The bill implements a study that will measure the feasibility of a service that would give victims of domestic abuse an alternative phone number they can use to contact law enforcement instead of 911. Trask said the technology for the service exists and that she expects it to become available next year after the state receives the feasibility study.
Trask emphasized that the most important aspect of the technology is that victims can discreetly notify police when they need help, and see an immediate response without their abuser knowing. She said this would help in cases where the abuser grabs the victim's phone or looks at their call history.
Trask said the bill would also shield victims whose partner is a police officer. "If your husband is a police officer, he's not gonna hear it over the radio because [your report] was automatically displayed," said Trask. "It protects officers too, because they're gonna walk into this situation knowing who the victim is, knowing who the perpetrator is, and they can remove the victim, get them to safety, and then start questions."
Trask added that the feasibility study will help determine the best way to designate the system-generated phone numbers as emergency numbers. This would allow police to see geolocation data from the number in the same way 911 does. Trask said it's called a "911 bypass system - like a panic button."
The bypass number could be saved as if it were a friend's or family member's number. Trask said victims will be able to designate a pin, or a codeword that could be naturally integrated in conversation. The victim could say the codeword to confirm they need help without having to explain the emergency when the abuser could be present. If the victim can't speak, the pin could be dialed like a text, and police would be dispatched immediately.
The bill received unanimous and bipartisan support in state congress, with the sponsors of the new law being Representative Peggy Gossett-Seidman (R) and Senate Minority Leader Lori Berman (D).
Trask said she is proud the bill passed amid the selective legislative session, with only around 200 bills passing out of roughly 1,900.
Trask expects HAVEN to also become federal law and said that a federal draft of the bill is in Rep. Kat Cammack’s office.
The bill amends the statute on dating violence to be more in line with protections and services offered by domestic violence statutes, such as exemptions offered through the Attorney General’s confidentiality program.
Domestic violence is a problem across the state, including Gainesville. According to the Florida Department of Children and Families, “In 2020, 106,515 crimes of domestic violence were reported to Florida law enforcement agencies, resulting in 63,217 arrests...” Studies suggest that half of domestic violence incidents don’t get reported, indicating a greater number of victims yearly.
Back in December 2024, local realtor Jonathan Rivera was arrested and charged with domestic battery. Rivera was released on recognizance, and it appears that prosecutors didn't move forward with charges. This wasn’t the only accusation, with Rivera allegedly assaulting the same victim earlier that year. In March 2025, Rivera killed the victim, Weilu Liu, and then committed suicide.
Trask said that she foresees the bill helping domestic violence victims in life-or-death situations. “It’s going to reduce fatalities, it’s going to reduce massive injury,” she said. “Imagine if you’re in an abusive situation and you don’t have to tell your partner that you’re leaving them or that you’re gonna call the police. They’re oblivious to what you’re planning, and they’re going to be oblivious when the police knock on the door, and the police will get you to safety before they can lose their temper and hurt you."
The HAVEN Act goes into effect on July 1.
This article was updated a couple hours following the initial publication with additional information about the bill Trask communicated over email. Some quotes are from the email while others are from the interview.
Update | May 27: Added further information on the pin/codeword mechanism of the bill.
