Mothers On a Mission to Stop Violence (MOMSV) was founded in April of 2008 by Denise Rotheimer, whose daughter, Jasmine was the victim of a violent crime at age 11.
MOMSV is a grass-roots organization dedicated to strengthening and enforcing laws that protect victims and survivors of violent crime and working to create a fair,
just, and equitable court system.
Arising from the treatment she received throughout the criminal justice system, Denise learned that crime victims in Illinois have to function as their own advocates...
their rights are rarely explained and there is no mechanism to enforce these rights.
Since, 2004 Denise proposed legislation to amend the Rights of Victims and Witnesses of Violent Crimes Act based on her criteria; eliminate the provision that denies
crime victims the right to appellate relief and a cause of action for damages when their rights are violated , and mandate the State's Attorney's Office to obtain a
signature by the crime victim as evidence that he or she received a copy of their rights. In 2004 and 2006
both House Bills died in rules committee.
In 2008, Denise went on to propose SB1020, known as, Jasmine's Law (named after her daughter), which became effective under Illinois law PA 96-1390 on 1/1/2011. Jasmine's
Law added alcohol as a "factor in aggravation" under all five sex felony offenses, giving judges the discretion to double the sentence of convicted sex offenders who
committed an act of sexual violence against a minor under 18 at the time the victim was under the influence of alcohol and the offender knew or should have known the
victim was under the influence of alcohol during the commission of the sexual offense.
Following the passage of Jasmine's Law, Denise proposed HB1237,
known as the Survivor Rights Act, which passed the House unanimously in April 2011 but died under the
leadership of Senator Michael Noland in committee during veto session. Despite their failed attempts to enforce victims' rights through the legislature, Denise and
Jasmine filed a federal complaint requesting the Federal Judge to declare unconstitutional the provisions under Illinois law that denies victims due process and equal
protection of the laws in violation of their 14th Amendment right as U.S. citizens. The status hearing on their case Jimenez v. State of Illinois 11 c 4707 is set for January 18, 2012.
Denise founded and hosts a monthly cable television show to raise awareness of issues affecting the safety of our communities, "Enforce Justice."
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