[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6292 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6292

   To deny entry into the United States of officials of any foreign 
government, including their immediate family members, who commit or who 
fail to rectify fundamental due process and human rights violations of 
       imprisoned United States citizens, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 2, 2012

 Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself, Ms. Buerkle, Mr. Turner of New 
York, Mr. Wolf, and Mr. Engel) introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the 
     Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To deny entry into the United States of officials of any foreign 
government, including their immediate family members, who commit or who 
fail to rectify fundamental due process and human rights violations of 
       imprisoned United States citizens, 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 for Imprisoned Americans 
Overseas Act of 2012'' or the ``Jacob's Law of 2012''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The President is required under section 2001 of the 
        Revised Statutes of the United States (22 U.S.C. 1732) to 
        demand the release of any citizen who has been unjustly 
        deprived of his liberty by or under the authority of any 
        foreign government, and to undertake appropriate means to 
        obtain the release of such citizen.
            (2) In a statement submitted to the Committee on the 
        Judiciary of the Senate on July 27, 2011, Secretary of State 
        Hillary Clinton stated that ``[t]he State Department has no 
        greater responsibility than the protection of U.S. citizens 
        overseas--particularly when Americans find themselves in the 
        custody of a foreign government, facing an unfamiliar, and at 
        times unfair, legal system.''.
            (3) Some United States citizens imprisoned in foreign 
        countries have been and continue to be denied fundamental due 
        process and human rights under both local and international law 
        by foreign government officials.
            (4) Mr. Jacob Ostreicher, who has been detained in the 
        notorious Palmasola prison in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, 
        since June 4, 2011, is one of the United States citizens who 
        currently is enduring multiple, egregious, and continuous 
        violations of his fundamental due process and human rights 
        under both local and international law.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that foreign 
government officials responsible for violations of fundamental due 
process and human rights of imprisoned United States citizens, as well 
as their immediate family members, should not have the privilege of 
traveling to the United States while United States citizens unjustly 
languish in their prisons.

SEC. 3. DENIAL OF ENTRY INTO THE UNITED STATES OF CERTAIN FOREIGN 
              GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.

    (a) Denial of Entry.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
the Secretary of State may not issue any visa to, and the Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall deny entry to the United States of, any foreign 
government official identified pursuant to subsection (c)(1)(C) or any 
immediate family members of such official.
    (b) Permanent Ban.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if 
any United States citizen identified pursuant to subparagraph (c)(1)(A) 
dies from any cause while in the custody of a foreign government, the 
government officials identified pursuant to subparagraph (c)(1)(C) in 
relation to such citizen and the immediate family members of such 
officials may not be issued any visa by the Secretary of State, and may 
not be admitted by the Secretary of Homeland Security, to the United 
States at any time on or after the date of the death of such citizen.
    (c) Designation of Inadmissible Foreign Officials.--
            (1) Report to congress.--Not later than 30 days after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act and every 180 days thereafter 
        for five years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the 
        appropriate congressional committees a report that contains the 
        following:
                    (A) An identification of United States citizens 
                imprisoned in foreign countries whose fundamental due 
                process and human rights pursuant to international 
                standards are being violated.
                    (B) An identification of the fundamental due 
                process and human rights violations that are being 
                committed against the citizens identified in 
                subparagraph (A).
                    (C) An identification of the government officials 
                who, based on a reasonable possibility, are responsible 
                for the violations of, or are failing to fulfill their 
                official responsibility to protect, the rights 
                identified in subparagraph (B) of any citizen 
                identified in subparagraph (A).
            (2) Additional reporting requirement.--In the case of each 
        semi-annual report required under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
        of State shall include a list of the names and titles of those 
        government officials identified in subparagraph (1)(C) and the 
        names and relationships of the immediate family members of such 
        officials who were denied a visa or entry to the United States 
        pursuant to subsection (a) or (b) during the immediately 
        preceding 180-day period.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on 
        Foreign Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House 
        of Representatives, and the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
        the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate.
            (2) Immediate family members.--The term ``immediate family 
        members'' means a spouse, daughter or son regardless of age, 
        parent, brother, sister, and fiance or fiancee.
                                 <all>