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Two weeks ago, the 2024 legislative session kicked off. The Indiana General Assembly is in full swing, and I am working hard to solve real issues for everyday Hoosiers and make Indiana a better state in which to live, work, and raise a family. This year, the committees I have the honor of serving on are Courts and Criminal Code, Roads and Transportation, and Veteran Affairs and Public Safety.
My legislative priorities
Many of the bills that I offered this year are focused on public safety. First, I authored House Bill 1021 [ [link removed] ] establishing a “Green Alert” which alerts law enforcement when an at-risk veteran goes missing. When veterans go missing, they are more likely than others to harm themselves or commit suicide. By creating a separate alert system for veterans, police go into the situation informed and with the awareness that veterans are more likely to be armed, as well.
Additionally, I authored House Bill 1325 [ [link removed] ] which deals with the safe storage of firearms. For most of 2023, Indiana ranked number 3 in the nation for accidental child shootings behind only Florida and Texas (which have 3 to 4 times Indiana’s population) with 9 deaths and 19 injuries. Accidental child shootings are 100% preventable. This common sense policy would hold people accountable for leaving a firearm unsecured with the knowledge that a child could gain access.
To learn more about these bills and other legislation I authored or coauthored, check out my legislator page here [ [link removed] ].
Resolutions to honor Officer Breann Leath and Deputy John Durm
This week, the House passed House Concurrent Resolution 4 and House Concurrent Resolution 2 to honor the lives of two fallen Indianapolis law enforcement officers who were lost in the line of duty.
Officer Breann Leath, 24, was killed on April 9, 2020, while responding to a domestic violence disturbance. Breann’s dedication to our community was the embodiment of public service. I authored HCR 4 to rename a portion of U.S. Highway 52 between Davis Road and German Church Road the “Officer Breann Leath Memorial Mile” so that her memory will forever be honored in the community she died serving.
Deputy John Durm, 61, was killed while transporting a prisoner on July 10, 2023. For 38 years, John Durm faithfully served our community as a Marion County Sherriff’s Deputy. I co-authored HCR 2 to rename the stretch of I-74 southeast of the Action Road exit the “Deputy John Durm Memorial Mile” for his family, loved ones, and members of his community to remember his sacrifice and dedication.
Closing a loophole for sex offenders in Indiana
This week, I successfully amended House Bill 1307 to close a loophole in Indiana’s laws governing sex offenders. Currently, Indiana law only restricts convicted sex offenders from employment at venues where one could reasonably expect to encounter children, such as schools, public parks, or childcare facilities. The amended bill would bring Indiana in line with the majority of US states by expanding that law to include settings where offenders:
Have more than incidental or occasional contact with a child without the child’s parent, guardian or custodian present;
Have supervisory or disciplinary power over a child; or
Are expected to touch a child on a more than an incidental and occasional basis.
It is time to close the loophole that allows convicted sex offenders to be near children. Period. Full stop. When it comes to the safety of Hoosier children, there can be no loophole.
I am humbled by what I have accomplished in the first two weeks of session. If you want to weigh in on any legislation moving in the general assembly, feel free to contact my office by emailing [email protected].
Sincerely,

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