Benjamin S. Barnes is an American politician who represents district 21 in the Maryland House of Delegates

Maryland House of Delegates

The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland, and is composed of 141 Delegates elected from 47 districts. The House chamber is located in the state capitol building on State Circle in Annapolis...

.

Background

Ben grew up in Prince George's County and graduated from Eleanor Roosevelt High School

Eleanor Roosevelt High School (Greenbelt, Maryland)

Eleanor Roosevelt High School , is a Maryland public magnet high school specializing in science, mathematics, technology, and engineering. The school was established in 1978 at its current location in Greenbelt, Maryland and is part of the Prince George's County Public Schools system...

 in 1993 and then attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro , also known as UNC Greensboro, is a public university in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States and is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina system. The university offers more than 100 undergraduate, 61 master's and 26...

 where he got his B.A.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 in economics & political science in 1998. Barnes later graduated from the University of Baltimore

University of Baltimore

The University of Baltimore , located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood at 1420 N. Charles Street, is part of the University System of Maryland. Through the Freshman Initiative or Lower Division Initiative, UB has transformed from an upper division university to a...

 School of Law with a J.D.

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 in 2003 and was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 2004.

In the legislature

Delegate Barnes is a member of the House Judiciary Committee and its civil law subcommittee. He is also a member of the Special task force on Alcohol and Substance Abuse.

Legislative notes

• voted for the Clean Indoor Air Act of 2007 (HB359)
• voted in favor of the Tax Reform Act of 2007(HB2)
• primary sponsor- Access to Public Records - Permissible Denials - Public Institutions of Higher Education in 2007 (HB289)
• primary sponsor for - Maryland House Bill #1055 (HB1055) that would permit Gay Marriage in the State of Maryland
• primary sponsor of Legislaton removing guns from domestic abusers
• primary sponsor of Legislation giving Judges the authority to order domestic abusers to wear GPS units alerting victims and police if the abusers comes around the victim

Lt. Governor's response to vote against HB 700

In response to certain criticisms of Ben Barnes, Lt. Governor Anthony Brown wrote a letter to the Laurel Leader (local newspaper in Laurel, MD) defending Barnes' record on domestic violence legislation. Here is a paragraph from that letter:

"Del. Ben Barnes has been a strong champion and advocate on behalf of victims of domestic abuse. A simple review of his legislative record clearly shows his commitment to rooting out such violence. Too many Marylanders personally know what domestic violence looks like and Governor O'Malley and I will continue to work with members of the General Assembly, like Delegate Barnes, stakeholders, advocates and public safety professionals to end domestic violence in our communities."

Lt. Governor Brown is also the O'Malley-Brown administration's point person on domestic violence policy issues.

Vote against HB 700

During the recently completed 2010 legislative session, Barnes was among more than a dozen representatives who voted down HB700. The bill would have made it easier for domestic violence victims to get protective orders. Women's groups throughout Maryland protested Barnes'decision. Maryland HB 700 sought to alter the standard of proof for issuing a final protective order from clear and convincing evidence to a preponderance of the evidence. If the bill would have become law, a judge could find from the preponderance of the evidence that the alleged abuse has occurred, and the judge could grant a final protective order for relief from abuse to any eligible person. With this, Maryland continues to be the only state in the U.S. to require this standard for issuance of protective orders.

Immigration

Barnes, along with his fellow District 21 Delegates, voted in favor of in-state tuition for illegal immigrants in 2007 (HB6)

In the Democratic party

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Barnes was elected and served as a pledged delegate for Hillary Clinton to the 2008 Democratic National Convention

2008 Democratic National Convention

The United States 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for President and Vice President of the United States. The convention was held in Denver,...

in Denver, Colorado.