Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila Federal Officers and Employees Protection Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Jackson Lee for her leadership in this effort to make sure that we protect not only other diplomats, but our agents that work overseas. I also want to thank Mr. Michael McCaul, one of my co-leads on this, Mr. Bill Pascrell, Mr. Filemon Vela, and other Members, all bipartisan, that support this.

On the Senate side, the lead sponsors were Senator John Cornyn and also Senator Chris Coons, and a whole bunch of other folks. I certainly want to say thank you so much.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is important because this is a bipartisan bill, and it ensures that individuals who harm or attempt to harm U.S. Federal officers or employees serving abroad can be brought to justice and prosecuted in the United States.

Furthermore, this bill will improve the safety and the security of not only the agents but any diplomat or any Federal employee that works outside the U.S. or overseas by ensuring that crimes that are committed against Americans serving abroad can be prosecuted by United States courts.

As the chairwoman mentioned a few minutes ago, it was very unfortunate what happened, and it is a change on the--we want to make sure that the intent of the law that has been there will be followed, and that basically just means that that section 1114 of the United States Code would say that it also covers foreign jurisdiction. So, therefore, we ask that we support this legislation because as it was mentioned, on February 15, 2011, ICE Special Agent Jaime Zapata and also his colleague, Victor Avila, were ambushed by members of the Mexican drug cartels in San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

Unfortunately, as it has been mentioned, Special Agent Zapata died because of his injuries. ICE Special Agent Jaime Zapata's murderer cannot be brought to justice because of that loophole in the current law, and this bipartisan legislation will close that loophole and ensure that the safety of all Federal employees serving our Nation abroad will be protected.

There must be severe consequences brought to bear against any individual who harms any of the Federal employees who are serving abroad. We need to know that the heroism of Special Agent Zapata and also Special Agent Avila, by holding those people who committed violence, are held accountable.

Furthermore, this issue and this bill is also important to me because Special Agent Zapata was assigned to the Homeland Security Investigations Office located in my hometown, Laredo, Texas, while he served on the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Unit as well as the Border Enforcement Security Task Force known as BEST.

So, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

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