Leahy statement on House passage of HR 5107

October 6, 2004

Leahy Hails House Passage Of DNA Bill; Calls On President Bush And Attorney General Ashcroft to ‘Get Out Of The Way’ Of Bipartisan Package that has Overwhelming Bipartisan House And Senate Support

The U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday again overwhelmingly passed bipartisan legislation –- The Justice For All Act — that would help state and local governments use DNA evidence in convicting the guilty and exonerating the innocent. Today’s House margin — 393 to 14 — was even larger than the vote a year ago, when the House passed a similar version of the bill in a vote of 357 to 67.

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), chief Democratic sponsor of the bill in the Senate, commended the House’s action and the leadership of House Judiciary Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.) and Reps. William Delahunt (D-Mass.) and Ray LaHood (R-Ill.) in winning the bill’s passage. “How often do you see bills pass by margins like that?” he asked, noting that the bill also would be expected to easily pass the Senate if it reaches the floor for a vote. But Leahy said the bill’s Senate passage in the waning days of the congressional session continues to be threatened by holds by Republican Senators Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), and John Cornyn (R-Texas), buttressed by opposition from President Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft.

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 21 approved the bill – sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Leahy, after months of its being slowed by resistance by three Republican members of the panel.

“If the White House kills this bill it will be a travesty,” said Leahy, ranking member of the Judiciary Committee and author of the Innocence Protection Act, which is included as Title 3 of the DNA package. “Putting this off another year may seem fine to the President or the Attorney General, but another year is a long time if you’re a crime victim or if you’re wrongly accused, waiting on death row for the chance to prove your innocence. Another year will pile more untested rape kits to the thousands already stacking up in hundreds of crime labs across the country.

“This bill is a rare example of bipartisan cooperation for a good cause, and instead of helping, the White House has only hindered,” Leahy said. “They have been unwilling to lead. They have been unwilling to follow. Now, when all it would take is for them to get out of the way, they’re even unwilling to stand aside. The time has come for the President to understand what is happening here, and to become part of the solution instead of part of the problem.”

“DNA is the miracle forensic tool of our lifetimes,” Leahy continued. “It has the power to convict the guilty and to exonerate the innocent. And as DNA testing has become more and more available, it also has opened a window on the flaws of the death penalty process. But our crime labs and courts haven’t caught up with the DNA revolution. Across the country, DNA backlogs are massive and growing. Crime labs haven’t been able to keep pace with advances in technology. The legal system hasn’t fully recognized DNA’s value.

“This is a bill to put this powerful tool into greater use in our police departments and our courtrooms. It also takes a modest step toward addressing one of the most frequent causes of wrongful convictions in capital cases – the lack of adequate legal counsel.

“These reforms, to put it simply, will mean better, faster, fairer criminal justice, and President Bush and Attorney General Ashcroft deserve to be held accountable if they prevent these reforms from happening.”

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