Cornyn Co-Sponsors Bipartisan Bill To Combat Gang Violence
Cornyn Co-Sponsors Bipartisan Bill To Combat Gang Violence
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, former judge and Texas Supreme Court Justice, joined a bipartisan group of Senators Wednesday in introducing legislation to fight gang violence. The Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007 establishes new crimes and tougher penalties to deter and punish members of street gangs. It also provides more than $1 billion in funding for gang enforcement, prevention and intervention programs. The bill was introduced by U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif, and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah.
"Gang violence devastates communities in big cities and small towns across Texas and the nation. Gangs are increasingly associated with international crime syndicates that smuggle drugs and traffic human beings across our borders," Sen. Cornyn said. "We must give federal prosecutors the tools they need to fight the rising gang epidemic. It's also important to build on proven initiatives, such as Texas Exile that take guns out of the hands of criminals."
The Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007 would help those working on the front lines by adopting new criminal laws and tougher penalties against those who commit gang-related crimes, authorize funding for investigations, prosecutions and witness protection programs, and invest in successful community programs to prevent young people from joining gangs in the first place.
Key provisions of the Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007:
* Designate $1.02 billion to fund gang enforcement, prevention and intervention programs over five years;
* Replace the current federal law's sentencing enhancement for gang-related conduct with a section that directly criminalizes and penalizes criminal street gang crime, as well as related conspiracies and attempts to commit crimes in furtherance of a criminal street gang;
* Create new criminal offenses to prohibit recruitment of minors to criminal street gangs and gang recruitment in prisons;
* Increase the penalties for racketeering and other existing offenses, create a new federal crime for violence committed in furtherance of drug trafficking and establish violent crime reforms needed to effectively prosecute gang members.
http://cornyn.senate.gov/index.asp?f=record&lid=1&yid=1&rid=237298&pg=1