Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed GPS monitoring bill to help better protect domestic violence victims that goes into effect July 1st.

Governor Bill Lee signed The Debbie and Marie Domestic Violence Protection Act into law on Tuesday, which lawmakers have called one of the most consequential bills they passed this last legislative session.

Rep. Clay Doggett, R-Pulaski, sponsored the bill, which makes GPS monitoring a condition of bail for certain domestic violence and aggravated stalking charges. This would be a device worn by and paid for by the offender.

GPS service providers then notify a victim’s cell phone if their alleged attacker is within a certain proximity of their location. The company must also notify local law enforcement if a defendant violates the terms of their bond conditions.

This bill was named after Debbie Sisco and Marie Varsos who were killed by Marie’s husband Shaun back in 2021.

Shaun was arrested a month before the shooting after he had strangled Marie where she filed for an order of protection, but that wasn’t enough to keep Shaun from tracking her down at her mother’s home.

Shaun waited outside his mother-in-law’s home for hours searching for signs of Marie, before eventually opening fire.

Marie was on the phone with 911 when she fired several rounds back at Shaun hitting him three times, but sadly Marie and Debbie died from their injuries. Shaun later took his own life.

The bill will go into effect on July 1st.