[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 26 (Thursday, February 9, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E312-E313]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                     VICTIM RESTITUTION ACT OF 1995

                                 ______


                               speech of

                     HON. RANDY ``DUKE'' CUNNINGHAM

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 7, 1995

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 665) to 
     control crime by mandatory victim restitution.

  Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 665, 
the Victim Restitution Act. This bill, which is part of our Contract 
With America, will help to bring real justice to the millions of 
Americans victimized by crime each year.
  Too often, our criminal justice system ignores the victims of crime. 
Americans are justifiably outraged by a system that guarantees cable 
television and other creature comforts to criminals, while leaving the 
victims of crime facing recuperation from injuries or massive financial 
loss. Insurance rates are increased by a need to provide health care 
for victims of crime or compensating victims for losses from theft. 
Meanwhile, no mechanism exists to insure that criminals bear a 
financial penalty for their actions. This bill will change Federal 
criminal proceedings to insure that the victims are compensated by 
their assailants.
  The Bureau of Justice Statistics has reported that from 1973 through 
1991, there were 36.6 million people injured as a result of violent 
crime. In 1992, almost 34 million Americans were victims of crime. 
Crime against people and households resulted in an estimated $19.1 
billion in losses in 1991. Each year, injuries from crime cause some 
700,000 days of hospitalization. The human costs of crime are real and 
growing.
   [[Page E313]] While we have seen a growing awareness of this problem 
in recent years, we still fail to adequately compensate the victims of 
crime. This bill requires full financial restitution.
  H.R. 665 instructs Federal courts to award restitution to crime 
victims and allows courts to order restitution to people harmed by 
unlawful conduct. Although victims may receive temporary relief from 
insurance, the criminal must ultimately pay the amount. If a victim 
receives compensation from a civil suit, that amount must be reduced by 
the amount of the restitution order.
  For the first time, we establish that criminals must comply with 
restitution orders made by the court as a condition of probation, 
parole, or supervised release. H.R. 665 gives judges the authority and 
leeway to take any action necessary to insure that victims receive 
proper compensation.
  Under H.R. 665, Federal judges must order compensation when 
sentencing for convictions of Federal crimes. The judge may also order 
compensation to any other person who was physically, emotionally, or 
financially harmed by the unlawful conduct.
  Judges are given the leeway to consider indirect costs to victims, 
such as lost income, child care, and other expenses arising from the 
need to be in court. The judge is not to consider the income or 
resources of the offender or victim when determining the amount of 
compensation.
  Mr. Chairman, H.R. 665 is an important component in our battle to 
restore commonsense to our judicial system. It will act as a deterrent 
to crime and more importantly, shows that Congress is serious about 
recognizing and addressing the needs of the victims of crime. I urge 
passage by the House.


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