[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 74 (Thursday, May 23, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5625-S5626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THE INTERSTATE STALKING ACT

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I want to talk about a bill that I 
hope we can clear tonight in the Senate because it is a very important 
bill that will begin to protect the victims of stalking all over this 
country. You know, we did not really know much about stalking until the 
last few years. That is because it was a hard crime to pin down. 
Stalking is threats. It is harassment. It is the constant terrorizing 
of a victim, whether the act that is said would be done is actually 
perpetrated or if, sometimes, it is not. But whether it is or is not, 
it is a very tough thing for a

[[Page S5626]]

victim to continue to be in fear, to wonder, ``Am I going to have 
someone stick a knife in my back? Am I going to be able to walk in my 
neighborhood without fear? Am I going to be able to go to sleep at 
night without fear?"
  Then, in fact, we have found that the victims of this stalking 
actually become victims sometimes. When Congressman Ed Royce and I 
started working on this we had a press conference in which we had some 
incredible stories of stalking victims. A woman from California who was 
constantly threatened, who moved to Florida to escape this stalking 
from this person that she really did not know and who was clearly 
demented--she moved to Florida and one night did become a victim. The 
person broke into her home and threatened her with a knife. She did get 
away without injury.
  But then there was the stalking victim whose husband was outside with 
his wife and she was shot to death, he was shot, and this was from a 
person who had constantly threatened his wife. So they could have 
prevented it if there had been some way to do it, but, in fact, there 
was no way to do it because stalking was not a crime until recently.
  Now we have the situation in which you have the stalking in one 
State, the person moves to another State, and they do not have the 
coverage in the other State because the actual harassment was in the 
first State and when it happened in the second State you had to 
establish it. The Interstate Stalking Act will make it a Federal crime 
to cross State lines to do the State crime of stalking. It does not 
make stalking a Federal crime, but it does make crossing State lines to 
do it, when it is a crime, a crime. That would give protection to the 
woman who moved from California to Florida. It will give protection to 
more of the people who have had the terrorizing experience of being 
constantly barraged by threats from another person. Many people in 
public life have had this experience. It is a scary thing to happen. To 
live in fear most of the time, or some of the time, is something we do 
not have to put up with in our society.
  This is a bill that passed unanimously in the House a couple of weeks 
ago. It was passed out of the Judiciary Committee today on a very 
bipartisan basis. I thank Senator Hatch and Senator Biden for 
expeditiously having hearings on this bill and putting it through the 
committee. Now I am very concerned because I thought this would be a 
bill that would not cause any problem and I would, of course, like to 
see it go through tonight because I think the President will sign this 
bill. I think the President is going to see the need for this bill. I 
think if he can sign it before we come back from the Memorial Day 
recess, that that might save a life. It might save a victim from being 
harassed. It really might help a victim. If it helps one victim in this 
country, then why not do it?

  If we pass it tonight, it will go straight to the President because 
the bill is in the form that it passed the House. This should not be a 
tough bill.
  I am asking my colleagues on the Democratic side to clear this bill. 
We thought that it was cleared. Perhaps it was not. Perhaps they can 
make a phone call, if someone has a concern on their side. I think we 
ought to be able to do what is right. This is a bill that ought to 
pass. It is a bill that has merit. It is a bill that is not 
controversial or it would have been stopped before now.
  So I hope my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will see fit 
to find out if there is a real problem with this bill. Or if it is a 
problem with something else, perhaps they will clear this bill, because 
it might save one life. It might save one person from being victimized 
and it would be worth it if we could do that.
  This is a bill that passed along with Megan's law on the House of 
Representative's side. Megan's law has already been signed by the 
President. This will allow victims of any kind of domestic violence 
harassment or if it is not a domestic partner or a spouse but a 
stranger who is doing the harassment, it will also provide protection 
if a person crosses State lines to do that.
  Mr. President, I hope it is not too late tonight. I would like to see 
this bill cleared because it is important. It is the right thing. It is 
bipartisan and I think there may be something on the other side that 
could easily be worked out.
  I just ask my colleagues on the Democratic side of the aisle to 
expedite this. We might save a life and it would be worth it.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

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