House Bill No. 1073, titled “Termination of residential leases,” passed the Indiana House of representatives on third reading by a vote of 92-2 on February 2. The bill, as amended, will now be taken up by a Senate committee, where it will be sponsored by Carlin Yoder of Middlebury. Marshal Michael Swallow of the Bristol Police Department supported the legislation in its original form.
The original bill was sponsored by Craig Fry of Mishawaka at the urging of Greg and Deborah Kiska, who live in his district. The Kiskas are the parents of Sheena Kiska, who was murdered in her River Shores apartment in Bristol in March 2008. She had tried to break her lease after her apartment was robbed in February 2008, but was told that she would have to pay a penalty of three months’ rent to do so.
The Kiskas have been on a crusade to pass “Sheena’s Law” ever since their daughter’s death, gathering thousands of names on a petition supporting the legislation. The bill as originally proposed by Rep. Fry would have allowed apartment dwellers to terminate their leases without penalty if they presented “an official copy of a police report” filed after being “the victim of certain crimes.”
HB 1073 became embroiled in controversy on January 25, when a major amendment narrowly passed on a 49-46 vote. The amendment directs a victimized tenant to go to court to “file a petition for an emergency possessory order” seeking termination of his or her lease. After an “emergency hearing,” the amendment states, “the court shall issue an emergency order” allowing the rental agreement to be terminated.
Craig Fry opposed the amendment because it would, in his opinion, make it more difficult, more time-consuming, and more costly for a frightened tenant to escape an allegedly unsafe environment.
Marshal Swallow, whose department investigated Sheena’s murder, agrees with Fry. He feels that a person who has already been victimized should not have additional obstacles and costs placed in front of them. Swallow and others communicated their concerns to lawmakers when it appeared that the controversial amendment might derail passage of the entire bill.
On February 2 Rep. Fry added his original draft of “Sheena’s Law” to HB 1240, titled “Various insurance matters,” since this was viewed as a “must pass” bill. It was passed by the House on an 80-18 vote. It was then that the amended HB 1073 was passed, in effect sending the legislation to the Senate in two forms, one with the original wording and one in its amended version.
Wes Culver, representative for the Bristol area, voted for HB 1073 in the committee which reported out the original bill, stating that he is in favor of allowing tenants to escape from dangerous situations without penalty. He also voted in favor of HB 1240, to which the original wording was attached. He feels that there is now a good chance of final passage by the full legislature.
