NASHVILLE, TN. (WLAF)- As of July 1, Tennessee passed a number of new laws. Over this week, WLAF will highlight some of the new laws.

Tennessee lawmakers enacted multiple laws aimed to protect children.

Among those laws were:

Evelyn’s Law: Parents in Tennessee must report missing children to law enforcement within 24 hours, or they could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor. The law is named after Evelyn Boswell, a 15-month-old from Sullivan County that was found dead after an extensive AMBER Alert. (Senate Bill 327)

Eli’s Law: The new law requires that the court be alerted about any child born to parents who have had another child removed from their custody. The law is named after a boy named Eli whose brother was removed from his parents’ home years prior to his birth. Like his brother, Eli was abused. (Senate Bill 867)

Child Exposure to Dangerous Drugs: This bill expands on the “Severe Child Abuse” law. It increases the penalty against individuals who knowingly expose children to illegal drugs like meth, fentanyl, and cocaine. (Senate Bill 1530)

Child Neglect and Endangerment: The new law also includes harsher penalties for anyone who places a child in imminent danger of death, bodily injury, or physical or mental impairment – like exposing them to dangerous drugs. Offenders would face a Class A misdemeanor, but if the child is 8 or younger, then the penalty is a Class D felony. (Senate Bill 1951)

Child Rape Sentencing: If someone is convicted of the facilitation of rape of a child or aggravated rape of a child, then the new law requires them to serve 100-percent of the sentence imposed, minus a maximum of 15 percent credit. It also adds community supervision for life. (Senate Bill 628) (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED 07/06/2021-6AM)

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