[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 111 (Thursday, July 25, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8829-S8830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       INTERSTATE STALKING PUNISHMENT AND PREVENTION ACT OF 1996

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 421, H.R. 2980.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 2980) to amend title 18, United States Code, 
     with respect to stalking.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the bill?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. LOTT. I ask unanimous consent that an amendment which is at the 
desk be immediately agreed to, the bill be advanced to third reading 
and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that 
any statements relating to the bill appear at the appropriate place in 
the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 5083) was agreed to, as follows:
       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC.   . GUN BAN FOR INDIVIDUALS COMMITTING DOMESTIC 
                   VIOLENCE.

       (a) Definitions.--Section 921(a) of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(33) The term `crime involving domestic violence' means a 
     felony or misdemeanor crime of violence, regardless of 
     length, term, or manner of punishment, committed by a

[[Page S8830]]

     current or former spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim, 
     by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by 
     a person who is cohabiting with or has cohabited with the 
     victim as a spouse, parent, or guardian, or by a person 
     similarly situated to a spouse, parent, or guardian of the 
     victim under the dometic or family violence law of the 
     jurisdiction in which such felony or misdemeanor was 
     committed.''.
       (b) Unlawful Acts.--Section 922 of title 18, United Stats 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (d)--
       (A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (7);
       (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (8) and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(9) has been convicted in any court of any crime 
     involving domestic violence where the individual has been 
     represented by counsel or knowingly and intelligently waived 
     the right to counsel'';
       (2) in subsection (g)--
       (A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (7);
       (B) in paragraph (8), by striking the comma and inserting 
     ``; or''; and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(9) has been convicted in any court of any crime 
     involving domestic violence where the individual has been 
     repesented by counsel or knowingly and intelligently waived 
     the right to counsel, ''; and
       (3) in subsection (s)(3)(B)(i), by inserting before the 
     semicolon the following: ``and has not been convicted in any 
     court of any crime involving domestic violence where the 
     individual has been represented by counsel or knowingly and 
     intelligently wavied the right to counsel''.
       (c) Rules and regulations.--Section 926(a) of title 18, 
     United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (2);
       (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (3) and 
     inserting ``; and'; and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(4) regulations providing for the effective recept and 
     secure storage of firearms relinquished by or seized from 
     persons desscribed in subsection (d)(9) or (g)(9) of section 
     922.''.

  The bill (H.R. 2980) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
read the third time and passed.
  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I do want to note that this is to amend 
title 18 of the U.S. Code with regard to stalking, with an amendment by 
Senator Lautenberg. I want to recognize the great work and the 
determined effort by Senator Hutchison in getting this legislation 
through. It is something certainly we should support, and we obviously 
do, and also there has been cooperation by Senator Hutchison and 
Senator Craig and Senator Lautenberg to get this language worked out.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, let me just briefly commend the 
distinguished Senator from New Jersey for his hard work on this issue 
and for his patience and his cooperation in bringing it to this point.
  I also wish to thank Senator Craig for working with us all day long 
in an effort to find a way to resolve the outstanding language 
differences, and I am very grateful to them as well.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I would be glad to defer to Senator 
Lautenberg.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Jersey.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. I thank the Chair.
  I rise to express my appreciation for the hard work that has gone 
into resolving the problem that we had. There was an attempt, a serious 
attempt to work it out, and at times it looked like we just could not 
come together. But through the persistence of the leaders, the help of 
Senator Craig and the agreement with Senator Hutchison, we were able to 
do this.
  It is an important piece of legislation. I will take time later on to 
talk about it, but I want to express my thanks to all of those who 
enabled this piece of legislation to go through. It is going to be very 
meaningful to women and families across this country. Two million cases 
of violence are reported within households each and every year, and 
this will take the murder away from substantial numbers of them.

  Again, I express my appreciation for the opportunity to get this bill 
passed.
  Mr. LOTT. I would be happy to yield to the distinguished Senator from 
Texas, who moved this legislation, the idea of getting some Federal 
ability to deal with stalkers across State lines. It is an issue that 
obviously affects women and children to the greatest degree in this 
country. She has shown real compassion and a determination to get it 
done, and I commend her for her efforts. I am pleased we have been able 
to get it worked out tonight.
  I would be glad to yield for her comments on it.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas is recognized.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. I thank the Chair.
  I thank the distinguished majority leader and the minority leader for 
helping us work this out. This is a bill that has been pending since 
Memorial Day to try to get all of the equipment and the resources of 
the FBI to go against the vicious people in this country who would 
harass and threaten women and children and would cross State lines to 
do it.
  In the old days, we did not even have stalking bills because people 
did not know what the crime was, so people would be threatened and 
harassed and there was no way to prosecute these vicious actors. But 
now we do have stalking bills in almost every State, and this will 
allow us to look them up, and if someone crosses State lines breaking a 
State law, we will be able to apprehend them. I hope we will be able to 
prevent the harm and even murders of women and children in this 
country.
  Senator Lautenberg is to be commended for working with us to make his 
amendment a good amendment, and it is a good amendment, and I applaud 
him for it. I think it adds to the bill. He was willing to work with 
us, and I think we now have a very strong bill. Because of Senator 
Lautenberg's amendment, we are also going to be able to keep people who 
batter their wives or people with whom they live from having handguns. 
So I think it is going to be a great bill that will give the women and 
children of this country some protection that they do not now have, and 
I am very pleased to be supportive of this compromise.
  I thank the Chair.

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