[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 543 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 543

To authorize incarceration in Federal prisons of prisoners sentenced to 
   life imprisonment under the habitual criminal statute of a State.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               March 10 (legislative day, March 3), 1993

  Mr. Specter introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize incarceration in Federal prisons of prisoners sentenced to 
   life imprisonment under the habitual criminal statute of a State.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) career criminals commit a larger percentage of the 
        violent and major felonies afflicting society, causing 
        immeasurable physical injury to innocent persons and damage, 
        destruction, or loss to their property estimated at billions of 
        dollars annually, thereby terrorizing law-abiding citizens, 
        disrupting the community, and undermining respect to law:
            (2) the continuing criminal activity of career criminals 
        adversely affects interstate commerce;
            (3) despite prior convictions for serious offenses, many 
        repeat offenders are placed on probation or sentenced to unduly 
        short terms of imprisonment by State judges, to the detriment 
        of public safety;
            (4) many repeat offenders cannot reasonably be 
        rehabilitated and, unless incarcerated for life, will commit 
        further felonies;
            (5) many States have ``habitual criminal'' statutes 
        providing for life sentences for repeat offenders, upon 
        subsequent felony convictions;
            (6) many State prison systems are severely overcrowded, 
        understaffed, and unable to confine convicts sentenced to life 
        imprisonment under such statutes in a safe, secure, and humane 
        manner;
            (7) State judges may be deterred by the lack of sufficient 
        prison space, staff, and funding from imposing life sentences 
        for offenders as provided by State law, and the legislatures in 
        those States without habitual criminal statutes may be 
        dissuaded by such considerations from enacting such statutes;
            (8) the interests of justice and public safety would be 
        served if State authorities felt free to impose life sentences 
        for repeat major offenders unrestrained by such considerations;
            (9) the Federal Bureau of Prisons sometimes has empty cells 
        available and can make additional space available by 
        consolidating inmates, consistent with suitable standards, and 
        ultimately can open additional institutions and cells, without 
        great cost or delay, in certain Federal facilities, including 
        abandoned military facilities and Public Health Service 
        Hospitals; and
            (10) the Federal Bureau of Prisons has an outstanding 
        record of safely, effectively, and humanely confining inmates 
        sentenced to life imprisonment.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to remove undue restraints on States 
imposing life sentences on repeat major offenders by authorizing the 
Federal Government to assume custody of prisoners sentenced under State 
habitual criminal statutes to imprisonment for life, without cost to 
the State.

SEC. 3. INCARCERATION OF THE STATE PRISONERS IN FEDERAL PRISONS.

    (a) In General.--On application by the head of a State prison 
system, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons of the Department of 
Justice shall promptly arrange and accept custody of prisoners who are 
sentenced, after the date of enactment of this Act, to life 
imprisonment under a State habitual criminal statute, to the extent 
that space is or can readily be made available in the Federal prison 
system.
    (b) Applications.--An application for Federal incarceration shall 
include--
            (1) a certification that the prisoner to be incarcerated 
        has been sentenced to life imprisonment under a State habitual 
        offender statute;
            (2) a description of the nature and circumstances of the 
        offenses committed by the prisoner to be incarcerated; and
            (3) a statement of the existing capacities of the State 
        prison system from transfer of the prisoner is requested.
    (c) Assessment.--(1) The Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall 
determine whether to accept custody of a prisoner based on an 
assessment of the matters described in subsection (b) and the 
availability of space in the Federal prison system.
    (2) A decision of the Director of the Bureau of Prisons under this 
subsection shall not be subject to review in any court.
    (d) Period of Incarceration.--The Federal Bureau of Prisons shall 
incarcerate a State prisoner under this Act--
            (A) until an appropriate State authority certifies to the 
        Director that the sentence of the prisoner has been terminated 
        by parole, pardon, or otherwise as provided by State law; or
            (B) absent such a certification, for the life of the 
        prisoner.

                                 <all>