[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 28 (Monday, February 13, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H1618-H1619]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    COMMUNITY POLICING IS SUCCESSFUL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania [Mr. Holden] for 3 minutes.
  Mr. HOLDEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise toady in favor of the Conyers-Schumer 
substitute that will be offered later on this afternoon.
  I say to my friends on the Republican side of the aisle that I have 
voted for many of the pieces of legislation that they have brought 
forth in this this session of Congress because I agreed with them and I 
felt they were right.
  But I urge my friends to reconsider what they propose doing to the 
cops-on-the-streets program. I have spent 14 years in law enforcement, 
7 as a county sheriff. And I believe in my heart that if we are going 
to win the war against crime, to make a significant contribution to 
reducing crime, we need more police officers on the street.
  [[Page H1619]] A clergyman friend of mine once told me that 85 
percent of success in anything is physical presence. All of us know 
that is true in politics. But if you ask
 anyone in law enforcement what they think about the physical presence 
of police officers on the street, they will tell you that it works, it 
will reduce crime, it will have the neighborhoods be involved with the 
community, and would have a positive reflection on the crime rate.

  I also say to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle that they 
should spend time in their districts, where we had police community 
grants awarded last year. I did that this past weekend. I spent time in 
the borough of Pottstown, which received Federal funding for two police 
officers about 10 months ago. They have reduced the crime rate in that 
borough because they have the physical presence of police officers 
walking the beat and being involved in the community.
  I also was very fortunate to have 24 municipalities in my district 
last week who were awarded funds to hire one additional police officer. 
I believe that is going to have a great effect on reducing the crime 
rate in those municipalities.
  I urge my colleagues to please reconsider what they are proposing 
this afternoon, please reconsider what they will do to the program that 
will put 100,000 police officers on the street.
  We do not need to have examples, as the gentleman from Illinois said, 
of abuse in the grant program. We need to have the police officers on 
those streets, fighting crime. I urge my colleagues to support the 
Conyers-Schumer substitute this afternoon.

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