Will leave them homeless. Thanks for joining us, im joie chen. We begin by looking at safety and shelter and the challenge facing those threatened by Domestic Violence. Put yourself in their shoes. In a moment of december operation should you call for help . Now you may think the only concern is whether the 911 may agitate the abuser, make things worse but in dozens of communities across the nation, america tonights sarah hoye found a different reason, it could force them from the safety of their own homes. Nobody would choose to live like that. Thats a hard way to live. Thats a hard way to live. Reporter for months lekesha briggs lived in fear. After Police Responded to a call to her home after her boyfriend became violent she warned her two more calls there would be trouble. Nobody ever called again from our house. That with was it. What else do you want to draw . Instead of protection, the mother of two working double shifts making ends meet faced eviction from her home. Because of a public nuisance ordinance in norris town. If tenants called 911 three times, making the home a threestrike property. Landlords in turn threatened tenants who called for help with eviction. Forcing residents like lakesha to a threatening dilemma. I cant have anybody call yall, i cant have anybody physically remove him. Its going to be as silent as possible because i dont want the cops to come because if they do i get put out my house. Lakeshas boyfriend would commit his most violent act yet. How dangerous did it get . How bad did it get for you . It got real bad. Got my lip bit off. Hit in my head with an ash tray and then he took a piece of the ash tray and slit my neck down here. Reporter all this time you couldnt call the police . All that happened in one night. One night . In one night yes. You could have been killed. Absolutely yep. Reporter after the warning from police, lakesha was afraid to call for help and even repeated to neighbors after fear of losing her home about. When i finally came to and i went outside and i saw one of my neighbors i was like, please dont call the coches. Ill go to the hospital myself. Dont call the cops. Theyre going to put me out of my house. Shes like i got to, i got ocall the cops. I went the opposite direction. At night lakesha was air lifted to a nearby trauma center. But it didnt end there did it . Uhhuh. Got worse. Be came back from the hospital june the 25th, about 8 30 at night. That next morning the 26th, my landlord was knocking on my window with a letter saying that i had about 14 days to vacate the premises. If not i would be locked up for trespassing. Reporter Lakesha Briggs is not alone. In rochester new york after her boyfriend attacked her and her children in her home she too faced eviction. I remember him grabbing me and pulling me off of the bed and onto the floor and he was choking me. And i remember trying to like force myself out of that choke position. So i grabbed the phone. And i dialed 911. Reporter the nuisance ordinance in rochester operates on a point system. Too many points and landlords can lose their rental license. After her call to police, javonte said she was informed by her landlord that she needed to move immediately. I still couldnt understand why the police would call them to tell them that because there was a Domestic Violence case at my address that they would have to get rid of me. Because my boyfriend had a gun like, i didnt have the gun. So i was really confused. You know, but by me being the person who actually rented the apartment, it was held on me. I remember saying to her im going to need something in writing stating you know what were talking about and whats going on. And she said to me, she said well if i see anything in writing it will be an eviction notice. Aclu senior attorney sandra park say both cases are the unintended consequences of laws created to regulate nuisance calls in rental properties. Whos really getting hurt here . When youre dealing with a law thats tied to police calls you are necessarily going to harm Domestic Violence victims. Because we know across the country most Police Departments the biggest category of calls they receive are about Domestic Violence. The aclu womens rights project released a report this june that examined nuisance ordinances in new york state by looking at two cities. It found the laws disproportionately impact victims of Domestic Violence. We are concerned that there is a bias and stereotyping of Domestic Violence victims that they are somehow blamed for the violence occurring against them. And so the city thinks its perfectly okay with moving forward with adopting an ordinance like this that will be enforced against them. Reporter these laws have a disproportionate effect on women living in predominantly black neighborhoods. Issued to landlords in milwaukee, Domestic Violence was involved in more than onethird of the cases there. We are basically setting the clock brak 40 years. The last 40 years of reform around Domestic Violence in this country has been all about encouraging victims to come forward, to report to law enforcement, despite all of the other barriers that they have to reporting. And these laws are basically saying, not only are we discouraging from reporting, but we are going to finish you for it. She we are going to punish you for it. She says in many many instances city officials threaten landlords in take away their rental permits. Facing homelessness, Lakesha Briggs decided to fight back. She filed a lawsuit against city in 2013. The following year norristown settled agreeing to pay 499,000 and even repealing its ordinance. Why was that so important for you . Because i almost lost my life. For you it wasnt about the money. Huhuh. Why was it important for you . Saving another womans life, so she wouldnt have to choose between the be choices of get beat up or shut up, basically thats a hard thing to go through. Maybe i should cut it for you. Javonte simmons is still waiting for her day in court. In 2012 she filed a lawsuit against the mayor be and the police chief. The waiting is as nerve wracking as it is exhausting, she says. Its been a very long time. Both of the womens attackers spend timeattackersspent time in jail are now out. This year, lakesha and her children have moved into a home she was able to purchase with her settlement money. She goes day by day and refuses to live in fear. I want these municipalities to realize the danger they put the people in. We know you have to keep your town your city whatever safe but use better judgment when it comes to what a nuisance really is. Because somebody thats fighting for their life is not a nuisance. Reporter lakeisha may have is won her fight but others are faced with fear. Does this happen often or is it exclusive to these incidents . No, joie, this happens across the country. We dont have firm numbers as to x amount of ordinances on the books in x amount of states. The aclu found in their report there are about 59 of these ordinance he nationwide. However, there was another study we found there were over 100 ordinances in the state of illinois itself. There is no way to qualify or quantify it across the country. Sarah, i cant believe the only way for women to solve this is to step up and file a lawsuit, i cant believe thats the only solution. Unfortunately thats the only resource. The only other recourse you have is to have the state step in. To create some sort of protection the state of new york they have put forward legislation but it hasnt passed. Im told theyre going to go ahead with another time another bill to see if they can at least get one passed in the coming session, so they can have this passed. But the only question is to have the state step in. And were not talking about state law or county law this is down to the cities. Sarah, you say this disproportionately affects Domestic Violence victims but this is not just Domestic Violence where theyre accused of being a nuisance as it were. There are lots of people who are affected. It is a domino effect, you can point to the landlord, the city or the police are actually squeezing the landlords to then put pressure on the tenants. Now also who are affected by this is the victim of any crime. If you get broken in to by kids down the block or whatever, you are now also a nuisance. Anybody who is in Domestic Violence situation any crime victim. I cannot believe that these rules were put into place to discourage people from Getting Police to help them. I mean after all thats why the police are there to help you. Why were these resumes established anyway . Rules established anyway . Right when he think about it when 911 came online, the 90s. Local Police Departments had gotten more phone calls than they had the in the past, didnt know how to respond to things. To help deter make there a case for which has more priority, things like this, these nuisance laws came on the books to help them respond to the calls effectively. For all intents and purposes these are the cause and effect of these laws, that disproportionately affects people who are victims of crime. America tonights sarah hoye thanks. Next the long journey of an ancient people, why protest of native americans are bringing them from their ancestral homes to the halls of congress. Later, a tragedy remembered, one year after the crash of malaysia air 17, questions remain. And a brother answer legacy, the mh 17 legacy claimed his life but gave birth to a new mission, thats aljazeera. Com americatonight. On target weeknights 10 30p et be. A fast forward look now to a trail of steers leading all the way to the u. S. Capital. Native americans charge controversial and consciously direct land swap, to the apache tribe is also highly prized by one of the Worlds Largest mining companies. Adam may reports that prize may be awarded to the highest bidder. Holy land, a place to be protected from the top of the sky to the bottom of the earth. Oak flat. Part of arizonas Tonto National forest sits on top of one of the worlds richest copper deposits. A Company Called Resolution Copper has been trying to acquire the land for nearly a decade. In december, they finally succeeded. Were the apache consulted in this before it was put into the defense bill . No, we were not consulted at all. Available to councilmember wensler nozee has fought against land deal for years. A couple of years from now they break ground at oak flat and youre standing there looking at it, whats going to go through your mind . I probably will cry. I mean, i definitely know i would cry. Because the history of our people, those dreams, those ways that god blessed us, and to turn to our children and know that theres no more. Its gone. Reporter Resolution Copper a subsidiary of foreign mining giant riotinto, year after year the bill failed to pass. This time a new tactic. The land deal was insert intermediate the defense spending bill. A move critics say allows the company to privatize the planned and bypass critical be environmental and critical protections. Im very grateful for that. Resolution copper and Parent Company rio tinto refused requests to speak to america tonight. We ran into dave richens resolutions head of affairs. Adam may. We were trying to get in touch with you for an interview. We were trying to get him to answer questions. About how did this get tacked onto a bill. You are welcome to join the meeting. The san carlos apaches say they havent given up yet but just up the road, Resolution Copper has already completed work on a new exploratory shaft. It will be used to gather information on the ore body, on the anticipation of the day when the land will be theirs. The protests, the apaches began a protest six weeks ago to a demonstration in sometimes square on friday as they try to draw substantiation to the oak flat land swap. They will continue their mash on to washington, d. C. On tuesday where they intend to press the issue with members of congress. Next here, grounded in sorrow, one year after families, children and innocence is lost, snatched from the sky above ukraine. And, divided loyalties. Next week on america tonight, the Unlikely Community coming to terms with the Iranian Nuclear nuclear time. Michael okwu visits with the largest persian jews in iran. Thats next week on america tonight. Get excited for the 1989 world tour with exclusive behind the scenes footage all of taylor swifts music videos interviews, and more. Xfinity is the destination for all things taylor swift. A year old miss industry marked in ukraine where families keep up an urgent demand for answers. In the downing of Malaysia Flight mh 17. That crash happened between the turmoil of russian backed separates and ukrainian politics. For families who lost loved ones this was a day of mourning and remembering. A memo to reflect. The steady procession to the crash site. On the anniversary of the tragedy, al jazeera am charless Charles Stratford joined the mourners. The balloons symbolizing the 298 people who fell to their deaths in the surrounding cub side, hundreds of people came out to pay their respects and mourn their dead. It began with a day of promise, july 17, 2014, passengers and crew started to board flight 17 just before noon. Touch teenager gary slock who snaps a selfie with his mom before take job. Flying time from amsterdam to kuala lumpur just over four hours. The local airport in ukraine tries twice to make contact with the pilot no answer, the planes black boxes stop recording, the aircraft is down. Al jazeeras Scott Heidler arrived on the scene just as the sun rose the next morning. He reported seeing white marks already dotting the site, mapping out the lives lost. Reporter as those rescue workers were fanned out across these fields, identifying the human remains, we were close at the time debris field as they came up. As they approached this debris field, he said, there are too many bodies in there, i dont are enough steaks and white flags. America tonights Lori Jane Gliha was in the small town, home of a young boy on board all remembered by their tight knit community. They bring flowers because they know families left the houses and they were happy and they will never come again. Never come back again. And you really see people of all ages. And america tonights producer fully cole gresser who had gone to high school her self reflected the pain in her own neighborhood. The neighborhood of hilvershom to lose residents in this city alone is absolutely devastating. She guided us through the town where grief was shared on every block. And to see the photos of the plain wreck something that is so far away, be so close to those memories that i hold so fondly, it has an effect on you. It is a profound effect. Two of the victims zeger and chris, were students at this high school. Describe to me what its like to hear those words that there were actually two kids from the school . It was really a shock. You think its a Long Distance away ukraine. And you hear more often about greater accidents. And its always far from home. And now suddenly, its very nearby. Teacher garrett vanderhuvel helped by laying flowers on the front lawn. Everybody is in shock. Its a graik shock because several families died. Flog with the conflict, the victims, that can be the consequence of how people act. And its that makes it more tragic. When its their own choice, you can say its your own responsibility. But they didnt choose for it, they went for vacations. And i hope that we will listen from that lesson, i said it in the mass. Say to one another im sorry. Make peace again before going to sleep. Because perhaps there is no new day for you. The evidence lay scattered across the crash site. A doll. A magazine. Suitcases still packed. The everyday objects reminder of sacrifices on when one year later so many secrets still lie. Exactly who brought mh 17 and with what . Was it planned . Was it ordered and will anyone ever be held accountable for the heartbreak left behind . A loss that wont be forgotten. Thats america tonight. Tell us what you think at aljazeera. Com americatonight. Talk to us on twitter or facebook and come back. Well have more of america tonight, tomorrow. More on every screen. Digital, mobile, social. Visit aljazeera. Com. Follow ajam on twitter. And like Aljazeera America on facebook for more stories, more access, more conversations. So you dont just stay on top of the news, go deeper and get more perspectives on every issue. Al jazeera america. Im mary snow in for ali velshi. On target tonight. The cost of injustice. Thousand the president wants to show mercy to people he says are just like him. Plus an exonerated death row inmate learning just how little his life is worth. President obama went to prison this week to make his case for reforming the u. S. Criminal justice system. He visited the El Reno Correctional Institution near oklahoma city, becoming the first sitting president to visit the federal prison. The president met with inmates and walked past cells with big gray doors to address the social and financial cost that incarcerated millions of americans, many of