nt"

Walt Harris is still fighting for justice for his late stepdaughter.

Harris tragically lost his stepdaughter, Aniah Blanchard, after she was kidnapped last October and later confirmed dead Nov. 25 when her remains were found.

Since then, Harris has been working with Alabama government officials on Aniah’s Law, a bill that would allow authorities to hold suspects accused of committing violent felonies without bail.

Blanchard’s accused killer, Ibraheem Yazeed, is facing the death penalty. Last October prior to Blanchard’s disappearance, Yazeed was free on a $295,000 bond on charges of kidnapping, attempted murder, robbery, and possession of marijuana in connection with the beating of two men in a Montgomery hotel in January 2019.

As it stands in Alabama, bond can only be denied in cases of capital murder. The House Judiciary Committee approved the bill, but it has not yet passed, because the coronavirus pandemic has halted the process.

Walt Harris and Aniah Blanchard in an undated photo.

“Of course, with the pandemic we hit a bit of a snag, but we’re working on a law called Aniah’s Law, which would make sure violent offenders aren’t allowed bond, and It’s a bipartisan effort in the state,” Harris said during Thursday’s UFC on ESPN 8 virtual media day. “I mean, both guys came together like that, this bill, it flew through the judicial system so fast that it was kind of overwhelming to watch.

“I went to all the meetings. I met all the lawmakers and kind of got to see how the process worked, and we were very close to getting the bill passed and going to senate, but then the pandemic happened. So, what’s gonna happen when everything opens back up and everything clears back up, they’re gonna re-introduce the bill. I think it’s gonna go through the same process pretty quickly, and hopefully we’ll have the law before 2020 is over, and other states will grab it and enact it as well to protect people.”

Harris, who understandably took time off when Blanchard disappeared, returns to action this Saturday against Alistair Overeem in the UFC on ESPN 8 headliner.

UFC on ESPN 8 takes place at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.