Topeka ? The Kansas House on Thursday advanced legislation aimed at reducing domestic violence and improving ways to identify offenders and steer them to treatment.

State Rep. Pat Colloton, R-Leawood, called House Bill 2517 “one of the most important” public safety measures of the legislative session, and she cited the murder of Jana Mackey as she urged House passage. A final vote on the bill is expected Friday.

Mackey, a Kansas University law student, was killed in 2008 in Lawrence by a former boyfriend, who subsequently committed suicide. Mackey was well-known for her work on many social justice issues.

Mackey’s parents, Christie and Curt Brungardt, have been pushing for the bill. Christie Brungardt was in the House gallery Thursday during discussion of the measure.

The bill would expand the kinds of crimes that could be considered as domestic violence and require authorities to direct offenders into treatment programs.