Delaware
Governor Matt Meyer Ceremonially Signs Senate Bills Improving Child Safety – State of Delaware News
GEORGETOWN — On Friday, October 10, Governor Matt Meyer ceremonially signed Senate Bills 142 and 143 into law, which increase safeguards against exploitation and support parental access to children’s digital accounts.
“In Delaware, we’re committed to doing everything we can to keep our children safe and families well-informed,” Governor Matt Meyer said. “These bills help bring our state up-to-speed with some of the risks that technology poses to our communities and kids, while equipping teachers, parents, and families with the knowledge and awareness they need to prevent abuse before it happens.”
Senate Bill 142 increases penalties for sexual extortion in Delaware when the victim is a child or vulnerable adult, or when the offense causes serious injury or death, raising it from a Class E to a Class B felony. It also requires Delaware schools to include education about sexual extortion in their curriculum.
Also known as “Gavin’s Law,” Senate Bill 142 is modeled after a law passed in South Carolina, sponsored there by State Representative Brandon Guffey. In 2022, Rep. Guffey’s son, Gavin, was a victim of sexual extortion and took his own life at just 17 years old.
Senate Bill 143 expedites court proceedings for parents or legal guardians seeking access to a deceased minor’s digital assets and accounts. It also makes technical updates to ensure consistency with legislative drafting standards.
Both bills were sponsored by Senator Brian Pettyjohn and Representative Kim Williams.
“These bills represent another important step in Delaware’s ongoing fight against sextortion and human trafficking,” Senate Republican Whip Brian Pettyjohn said. “We’ve worked closely with survivors, advocates, and experts to strengthen our laws, improve training, and ensure victims have access to the support they deserve. I’m especially honored that South Carolina State Representative Brandon Guffey could join us today. His advocacy through Gavin’s Law has inspired meaningful change across the country and reminds us all why this work matters.”
“No family should endure unnecessary delays in accessing a loved one’s digital accounts, and no child should face the horrors of sexual extortion without robust legal and educational protections,” Rep. Kim Williams said. “As we become more reliant on technology in everyday life, these laws will provide Delawareans with the tools to combat these growing issues in the years ahead.”
For any questions or to schedule a one-on-one interview with Governor Meyer, please email govcomm@delaware.gov.
Thomas Jefferson University is opening a regional campus of its Sidney Kimmel Medical College in Delaware, an effort that will result in the state’s first medical school.
Jefferson beat out three other bidders to establish the four-year program in partnership with the state. The other bidders were the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, the consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Ponce Health Sciences University in Puerto Rico, Spotlight Delaware reported.
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The inaugural class of 40 medical students will begin instruction in July 2028. Initially, the campus will be based at the University of Delaware in Newark, with Jefferson faculty providing instruction. A permanent home for the campus is still being finalized, the Inquirer reported.
The medical students will receive 18 months of preclinical training on campus before receiving clinical training from healthcare providers in Delaware’s southern counties, where the state’s physician shortage is most deeply felt. That shortage is compounded by an aging population, Delaware officials said.
“Jefferson is committed to being part of the solution to Delaware’s physician shortage,” Jefferson CEO Dr. Joseph Cacchione said in a statement. “We are proud to help build a future where every Delawarean has access to the care they deserve. Jefferson is all in.”
The school’s creation is being supported by $157.4 million from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Delaware is one of three states without a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program. Since the late 1960s, Jefferson and the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine have reserved seats for Delaware students.
“Sidney Kimmel Medical College has trained generations of physicians for more than 200 years, more than any other medical college in the country,” Said Ibrahim, dean of Sidney Kimmel Medical College, said in a statement. “It is a privilege to bring our mission to Delaware’s patients and communities.”
Jefferson has announced several expansions recently. The university is establishing a full-time doctor of nursing practice-nurse anesthesia program and several online graduate programs at the Lehigh Valley Health Network Center for Healthcare Education in Lehigh County. It also is opening a satellite respiratory therapy lab at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown.
Delaware officials said medical students will start their classroom instruction at UD and then do their clinical training at offices and health care systems in Kent and Sussex counties, where the shortage of doctors is most acute.
However, ChristianaCare, which has its own partnership with Jefferson, is not participating. The state’s largest health care system was part of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine’s unsuccessful bid to operate the school. In a joint statement from ChristianaCare and PCOM, the two organizations expressed disappointment with not being part of the consortium of higher education institutions and healthcare organizations.
“The path forward raises genuine questions about whether the school’s goals can be fully realized without ChristianaCare’s meaningful participation in its clinical training mission,” it said. “The success of any four-year medical program depends not just on an academic institution, but on a true and committed partnership with its clinical partners — one built on shared mission, mutual investment and trust developed over time.”
Students in the first class can get their tuition subsidized, covering all of their education costs, in exchange for an agreement to work in rural Delaware for five years.
Running the medical school is expected to cost Jefferson $78 million over the next five years. The money is from a federal rural health grant through the Rural Health Transformation Program, which congressional Republicans created in the so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act.”
The program will give $50 billion to every state over five years, though exactly the total each will eventually receive is unclear. Half of the money is to be distributed equally to states and the other half is awarded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services based on a variety of factors.
The state applied for $1 billion late last year to improve health care in Kent and Sussex counties. The Trump administration has so far allocated Delaware $157 million. Delaware is expected to receive at least $500 million over the life of the fund.
Delaware Ohio Housing Growth
A look at the rapid expansion of housing developments in Delaware, Ohio.
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Every few weeks Delaware city approves a new housing development. The city has more than 4,000 housing units in its development pipeline, contributing to the rapid growth in one of the fastest-growing counties in Ohio.
A crash shut down U.S. 42 in Delaware County in both directions June 2.
As of 7 a.m., U.S. 42 was closed from U.S. 23 to Jegs Place near the Delaware Municipal Airport.
It was not immediately clear whether anyone was injured in the crash or when the roadway would open.
This is a developing story and will be updated
Public Safety and Breaking News Reporter Bailey Gallion can be reached at bagallion@dispatch.com.
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