[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 362 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 362

 To ensure that law enforcement agencies determine, before the release 
or transfer of a person, whether that person has an outstanding charge 
                  or warrant, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 31, 2001

  Ms. McCarthy of Missouri (for herself, Mr. Skelton, Mr. Moore, Mr. 
   Lantos, and Mr. Graves) introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To ensure that law enforcement agencies determine, before the release 
or transfer of a person, whether that person has an outstanding charge 
                  or warrant, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Justice through Assured Knowledge 
and Enforcement Act''.

SEC. 2. PRE-RELEASE RECORDS CHECKS.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall establish guidelines 
for pre-release records check programs carried out by States.
    (b) Required Elements.--A pre-release records check program 
established under this section shall contain the following elements:
            (1) Check before each release or transfer.--A law 
        enforcement agency shall not release a person from custody, or 
        transfer a person in custody to the custody of another such 
        agency, unless that agency first carries out a pre-release 
        records check on that person.
            (2) Notifications.--If that check indicates an unresolved 
        warrant or charge, that agency shall not release or transfer 
        that person unless that agency first--
                    (A) provides notice that the person is in custody 
                to the law enforcement agency initiating that warrant 
                or charge, and provides that agency with a reasonable 
                opportunity to resolve that warrant or charge; and
                    (B) provides notice of that warrant or charge to 
                the law enforcement agency to which the person is to be 
                transferred, if applicable.
            (3) Penalties.--If an official is responsible for a 
        violation of a requirement of this subsection, that official 
        shall be subject to administrative discipline by that agency.
    (c) Compliance.--
            (1) Compliance date.--Each State shall have not more than 3 
        years from the date of enactment of this Act in which to 
        implement this section, except that the Attorney General may 
        grant an additional 2 years to a State that is making good 
        faith efforts to implement this section.
            (2) Ineligibility for funds.--
                    (A) A State that fails to implement the program as 
                described in this section shall not receive 10 percent 
                of the funds that would otherwise be allocated to the 
                State under section 506 of the Omnibus Crime Control 
                and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3765).
                    (B) Any funds that are not allocated for failure to 
                comply with this section shall be reallocated to States 
                that comply with this section.
    (d) Definitions.--For purposes of this Act:
            (1) The term ``pre-release records check'' means an inquiry 
        to determine whether an unresolved warrant or charge is 
        indicated in criminal history records databases prescribed by 
        the Attorney General in accordance with subsection (a), which 
        may include--
                    (A) the database of the National Crime Information 
                Center of the Department of Justice, or any comparable 
                Federal database; and
                    (B) any comparable database maintained by the 
                State, or in which the State participates.
            (2) The term ``law enforcement agency'' includes jails and 
        correctional institutions.
            (3) The term ``custody'' includes detention on suspicion of 
        charges and incarceration.
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