US House Judiciary Committee Passes Major Crime Legislation
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
House Legislators Advance DNA and Victims’ Rights Bills With No Objections, Move Provides Another Avenue for Passage of DNA Legislation
Spokespeople Available Including Legislative Staff, Rape Survivor Debbie Smith & 1st DNA Exoneree Kirk Bloodsworth
WASHINGTON, September 22, 2004 – The Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives today passed unanimously a new bill called the “Justice for All Act of 2004” (H.R. 5107), which incorporates the “Advancing Justice Through DNA Technology Act” (H.R. 3214/S. 1700). The bill is expected to move to the House floor for a vote next week—and later straight to the Senate floor.
Introduced by Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.), this leading crime legislation for the 108th Congress not only includes provisions that would protect victims’ rights, but that would also test a nationwide backlog of more than 300,000 rape kits and other crime scene evidence, and also ensure access to post-conviction DNA testing for those serving time in prison with claims of innocence.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday also passed out of committee the Senate version of the “Advancing Justice through DNA Technology Act” (S. 1700). The latest legislative activity in the House provides supporters of the DNA bill another avenue to secure passage of this legislation.
The new “Justice for All Act” includes many provisions from a victims’ rights bill sponsored by Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and already passed overwhelmingly in the Senate.
This move reflects continued commitment among leaders in the House Judiciary Committee, including Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.) and Rep. William Delahunt (D-Mass.) to advance effective DNA legislation this session.
** About H.R. 5107:
This legislation is a combination of the Victims’ Rights bill, S. 2329, passed by the Senate, and the DNA legislation, H.R. 3214, which passed the House of Representatives.
Victims of crime often feel their voices are not heard and their concerns are not adequately addressed in the judicial process. Many express frustration with a judicial system that affords many rights to the accused but few to the victim. This legislation addresses these concerns by codifying the rights of victims in the criminal code and providing enforcement provisions. Additionally, the victims’ rights section of this legislation provides grants to state and local governments to provide legal assistance to victims of crimes and to develop state-of-the-art systems for notifying victims of important dates and developments relating to criminal proceedings.
** About the DNA Legislation:
The legislation (H.R. 3214 / S. 1700) was introduced last October by Joint Judiciary Committee Leaders, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and today has 39 Republican and Democrat co-sponsors in the U.S. Senate. On November 5, 2003, the bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives with 250 cosponsors by an overwhelming vote of 357 to 67.
The Advancing Justice Through DNA Technology Act (H.R. 3214 / S.1700) is the product of a bi-partisan, bicameral compromise led by Senate Judiciary Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Ranking member Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT). This critical legislation will provide much needed funds to test the DNA backlog, provide funding for victims services through grants to prosecutor and defender offices, and ensure access to post-conviction DNA testing for those who may be in prison or on death row for crimes they did not commit. The bill:
- Enacts the Debbie Smith Backlog Grant Program, providing $755 million to test the backlog of over 300,000 rape kits and other crime scene evidence awaiting analysis in our nation’s crime labs;
- Enacts the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act and the Rape Kits and DNA Evidence Backlog Elimination Act, authorizing more than $500 million for programs to improve the capacity of crime labs to conduct DNA analysis, reduce non-DNA backlogs, train examiners, support sexual assault forensic examiner programs, and promote the use of DNA to identify missing persons;
- Creates the Kirk Bloodsworth Post-Conviction DNA Testing Program and authorizes $25 million over five years to help states pay the costs of post-conviction DNA testing; and
- Authorizes grants to states for Capital Prosecution and Capital Defense Improvement, which will be used to train, oversee, and improve the quality of death penalty trials, as well as assist families of murder victims.
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