[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2885 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2885

To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide for the award of the 
 Purple Heart to members of the Armed Forces who are killed or wounded 
      in a terrorist attack perpetrated within the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 8, 2012

Mr. Lieberman (for himself, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Pryor, and 
 Mr. Boozman) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide for the award of the 
 Purple Heart to members of the Armed Forces who are killed or wounded 
      in a terrorist attack perpetrated within the United States.

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

SECTION 1. AWARD OF PURPLE HEART TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES KILLED 
              OR WOUNDED IN TERRORIST ATTACKS WITHIN THE UNITED STATES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The Final Report of the National Commission on 
        Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (commonly known as the 
        ``9/11 Commission Report'') recognizes that there is a certain 
        ideology that gives rise to terrorism.
            (2) This ideology that gives rise to terrorism can even 
        influence citizens and residents of the United States to 
        perpetrate attacks within the United States against members of 
        the Armed Forces.
            (3) Two such attacks have already occurred within the 
        United States, one at a recruiting station in Little Rock, 
        Arkansas, on June 1, 2009, and one at Fort Hood, Texas, on 
        November 5, 2009.
            (4) According to investigative reports released by the 
        Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives 
        and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
        of the Senate at least 33 threats, plots, and strikes related 
        to domestic terrorism against United States military 
        communities have been uncovered since September 11, 2001.
            (5) These threats, plots, and strikes demonstrate that 
        members of the Armed Forces are at risk of terrorist attack not 
        only when deployed overseas, but also while stationed within 
        the United States.
            (6) The Department of Defense has recognized the threat 
        posed by terrorist attacks, including those perpetrated by a 
        member of the Armed Forces, by issuing revised regulations, 
        including Army Regulation 381-12 regarding the Military 
        Intelligence Threat Awareness and Reporting Program, to require 
        reporting of potential terrorist insider threat activity, 
        including when a member of the Armed Forces is ``advocating the 
        use of unlawful violence or force to achieve goals that are 
        political, religious, or ideological in nature''.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
Secretary of Defense (and the Secretary of Homeland Security with 
respect to the Coast Guard) should duly honor those members of the 
Armed Forces who are killed or wounded in terrorist attacks within the 
United States that are inspired by the ideology that gives rise to 
terrorism, as defined by the Final Report of the National Commission on 
Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (commonly known as the ``9/11 
Commission Report'').
    (c) Award of Purple Heart.--
            (1) Award required.--Chapter 57 of title 10, United States 
        Code, is amended by inserting after section 1129 the following 
        new section:
``Sec. 1129a. Purple Heart: members killed or wounded by terrorist 
              attacks perpetrated within the United States
    ``(a) For purposes of the award of the Purple Heart, the Secretary 
concerned shall treat a member of the armed forces described in 
subsection (b) in the same manner as a member who is killed or wounded 
in action as the result of an act of the enemy of the United States.
    ``(b)(1) A member of the armed forces described in this subsection 
is a member who the Secretary concerned determines was killed or 
wounded in a terrorist attack within the United States perpetrated by 
an individual or individuals expressing a political, religious, or 
ideological obligation to engage in unlawful violence directed against 
United States military operations or foreign policy, as described in 
Army Regulation 318-12 of October 2010 regarding the Military 
Intelligence Threat Awareness and Reporting Program.
    ``(2) In this subsection, the term `terrorist attack' means the 
calculated use of violence or threat of violence to inculcate fear 
intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the 
pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or 
ideological, as described in the Army Regulation referred to in 
paragraph (1).
    ``(3) In implementing this section, the Secretary concerned shall 
make no distinction between `international terrorism' and `domestic 
terrorism', as those terms are defined in section 2331 of title 18.
    ``(4) If a terrorist attack referred to in paragraph (1) includes, 
as victims, members of more than one armed force, the determination 
required by such paragraph shall be made jointly by the Secretaries of 
the armed forces concerned.
    ``(c) Subsection (a) shall not apply to a member of the armed 
forces whose death or wound is the result of the willful misconduct of 
the member.
    ``(d) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted--
            ``(1) to affect the designation of any individual alleged 
        to have perpetrated an attack referred to in subsection (b)(1) 
        as an enemy combatant for any purposes under law; or
            ``(2) to preempt or otherwise affect any legal proceedings 
        relating to such an attack.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
        beginning of chapter 57 of such title is amended by inserting 
        after the item relating of section 1129 the following new item:

``1129a. Purple Heart: members killed or wounded by terrorist attacks 
                            perpetrated within the United States.''.
            (3) Retroactive effective date and application.--
                    (A) Effective date.--The amendments made by this 
                subsection shall take effect as of January 1, 2009.
                    (B) Review of certain previous incidents.--The 
                Secretaries of the military departments (and the 
                Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the 
                Coast Guard) shall undertake a review of each death or 
                wounding of a member of the Armed Forces that occurred 
                within the United States between January 1, 2009, and 
                the date of the enactment of this Act under 
                circumstances that could qualify the death or wounding 
                as being the result of a terrorist attack within the 
                United States to determine whether the death or 
                wounding does qualify as a death or wounding resulting 
                from a terrorist attack within the United States for 
                purposes of section 1129a of title 10, United States 
                Code, as added by this subsection.
                    (C) Actions following review.--If the death or 
                wounding of a member of the Armed Forces reviewed under 
                subparagraph (B) is determined to qualify as a death or 
                wounding resulting from a terrorist attack within the 
                United States for purposes of such section 1129a, the 
                Secretary of the military department concerned (or the 
                Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to a member 
                of the Coast Guard) shall take appropriate action under 
                such section to award the Purple Heart to the member.
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