[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 10 (Monday, February 7, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 7, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
             ALL MUST WORK TOGETHER TO SOLVE CRIME PROBLEM

  Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the North Carolina's General Assembly will 
convene tomorrow in special session to address the problem of crime. 
Last week, Governor Hunt was in Washington and he came by to consult 
with me about his proposed, comprehensive crime package that includes 
many worthy proposals--some similar to those that some of us have 
advocated for years.
  I hope Governor Hunt will support the outright repeal of the prison 
cap that is forcing the early release of criminals in North Carolina. 
Tough prison sentences won't do much good if felons in prison are put 
back out on the street because of prison caps and prison overcrowding.
  Mr. President, I offered an amendment to the Senate's crime bill on 
November 17 to make it easier to repeal the prison cap and make it 
tougher for Federal courts to take over State prison systems because of 
overcrowding. It passed the Senate, 68 to 31, and I hope the amendment 
will become law.
  Mr. President, we must work together to deal with the crime epidemic. 
The American people are fed up with the crime wave that is taking over 
our country. Consider this headline in a Raleigh newspaper: ``Teenager 
shot to death outside video store.'' A 19-year-old man was gunned down 
while locking up the video store where he was working a second job.
  All of us must work together to stop the violence terrorizing our 
Nation. Criminals no longer fear the law--they know that it's unlikely 
they'll get caught; if and when caught, they rarely get prison 
sentences; and if the criminal goes to prison, he knows he'll be out in 
no time. Criminals laugh at the system.
  As the legislators gather in Raleigh, I hope they agree that we can 
no longer tolerate this lenient system of justice. It's time for 
drastic action. For starters, we need tough penalties for using a gun 
in a crime; we need more prisons and we must stop the early release of 
prisoners.
  That is why Senator Gramm, and I, and others, introduced a bill 2 
weeks ago that includes the toughest provisions from the Senate crime 
bill--provisions that may be kicked out of the final bill. The Gramm-
Helms bill gets tough on criminals:
  First, it requires a mandatory 10 year prison term if a criminal uses 
a gun; 20 years if he fires the gun; and a life term if he kills 
someone; second, it creates 10 regional prisons; third, it contains the 
three strikes, your out provision--where after a third violent crime a 
criminal gets life in prison; and fourth, it includes the Helms prison 
cap amendment that limits the ability of judges to impose caps on 
prison population--caps that force the early release of prisoners.
  This bill says, If you commit a serious crime you will definitely do 
serious time--no if, ands or buts about it.
  Mr. President, I feel strongly that we must keep violent criminals 
locked up instead of granting them early release. Thousands of 
criminals are released early and they often strike again, committing 
murders and rapes that wouldn't have happened if North Carolina did not 
have a prison cap.
  If the State had not had a prison cap, Michael Jordan's father would 
not have been killed; and two police officers in Charlotte, and Steve 
Stafford of Winston-Salem, would still be alive. All these murders were 
committed by criminals who had been given early release.
  Some Federal courts have said you can't stack prison bunks three 
high. What's worse, to stack prison bunks three high or to let killers 
back on the street to kill innocent citizens like James Jordan, or 
police officers Andy Nobles and John Burnett?
  Mr. President, the Gramm-Helms bill will help keep criminals behind 
bars. It will create 10 regional prisons and make it more difficult to 
impose unreasonable prison caps.
  Finally, Mr. President, this bill imposes tough sentences on 
criminals who use guns. If a criminal uses a gun during a crime, he'll 
get an automatic 10 years in prison; if he shoots the gun, an automatic 
20 years in prison--with no parole. This bill will make criminals think 
twice before they use a gun.
  Most of us heard President Clinton's State of the Union Address where 
he stated the Congress should pass a crime bill. But his Democrat 
colleagues may drop the most important provisions from the Senate crime 
bill. The President should insist that his Democrat colleagues in 
Congress include these provisions in the final bill. It is one thing to 
talk tough on crime; it's another to do something that will in fact 
protect society.
  I realize that this bill is not a cure all. The moral foundation of 
this Nation is crumbling. We must also restore the family unit and 
moral values in this country--values like personal responsibility, 
discipline and respect for the law.
  In the meantime, the Gramm-Helms bill is a step in the right 
direction.

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