Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila Federal Officers and Employees Protection Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 921, the Jamie Zapata and Victor Avila Federal Officers and Employees Protection Act.

In 2011, members of the Los Zetas drug cartel gunned down ICE Agents Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila in an attempted carjacking. Agent Zapata was killed.

The perpetrators of this terrible crime were members of the Los Zetas hit squad on a mission that day to shoot and steal vehicles for cartel operations.

The murder and attempted carjacking occurred in Mexico. So the perpetrators were extradited to the United States to face trial for the murder and attempted murder of the American agents.

In 2017, the cartel members were convicted under section 1114 of title 18 of the United States Code, which prohibits the killing of an officer of the United States. They were sentenced to life in prison.

On appeal, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that because the crimes occurred on foreign soil, section 1114 did not apply.

In light of this ruling, Federal law enforcement officers and civil servants stationed overseas are made more vulnerable to attack. The decision created a circuit split and opened a loophole in Federal law reversing centuries of precedent that the law was intended to apply extraterritorially.

The bill simply codifies centuries of precedent and legal understanding by clarifying the extraterritorial application of three Federal statutes to protect our Federal law enforcement officers and other Federal officials. The bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent in May.

Ms. JACKSON LEE.
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Mr. BENTZ. In closing, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. JACKSON LEE.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is necessary to ensure that Federal employees who are serving overseas can be protected by the American umbrella of justice.

We have seen since this tragic incident of those who were serving our country and lost their life and were injured. We have seen a myriad of attacks on diplomats and others outside of the boundaries of war. We have been stunned by actions against diplomats in embassies and outside of embassies.

So this is a bipartisan bill that was adopted by the Senate by unanimous consent, and I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation so the President can sign it into law and to be able to tell all of our Federal employees and diplomats who are standing in the name of that flag that is shown behind you, Mr. Speaker, that we do care about their service and their safety.

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

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is necessary to ensure that federal employees who are serving overseas can be protected by the American umbrella of justice.

This is a bipartisan bill that was adopted by the Senate by unanimous consent.

I ask that my colleagues join me in supporting this legislation so that the President can sign it into law.

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