The Michigan Senate overwhelmingly has approved a package of bills to overhaul the state's domestic violence laws.
Senators passed the seven-bill package Thursday. It still needs to be reapproved by the House before heading to Gov. Rick Snyder.
Democratic Rep. Robert Kosowski of Westland says his legislative director, Renee Edmondson, saw the need to update domestic violence laws while working as legislative director for a Detroit lawmaker.
Edmondson says conversations with Detroit lawyers and judges about the city's high rate of domestic violence spurred the legislation.
The package would create new rules for people who might undergo domestic mediation through the court system.
It also would protect pets from the person listed in a personal protection order and create a new legal category for assaulting a pregnant woman.
