[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 134 (Wednesday, September 25, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H11122-H11126]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DRUG-INDUCED RAPE PREVENTION AND PUNISHMENT ACT OF 1996
Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4137) to combat drug-facilitated crimes of violence,
including sexual assaults.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4137
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Drug-Induced Rape Prevention
and Punishment Act of 1996''.
SEC. 2. USE OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES TO COMMIT SEXUAL ASSAULT
CRIMES OF VIOLENCE
Section 404 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C.
844) is amended by inserting ``a person convicted under this
subsection for the possession of a mixture or substance
containing a detectable amount of a controlled substance,
with the intent to administer such mixture or substance to
another person to facilitate a crime of violence, as defined
in section 16 of title 18, United States Code, (including a
sexual assault) against that person, shall be fined under
title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned not more than 15
years, or both, and if the victim or intended victim of the
crime of violence is age 14 or under, shall be imprisoned not
more than 20 years, and'' after ``Notwithstanding the
preceding sentence,''.
SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL PENALTIES RELATING TO FLUNITRAZEPAM.
(a) General Penalties.--Section 401 of the Controlled
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1)(A)--
(A) by striking ``or'' at the end of clause (vii);
(B) by inserting ``or'' at the end of clause (vii);
(C) by inserting after clause (viii) the following:
``(ix) 1 gram or more of flunitrazepam;'';
(2) in subsection (b)(1)(B)--
(A) by striking ``or'' at the end of clause (vii);
(B) by inserting ``or'' at the end of clause (vii);
(C) by inserting after clause (viii) the following:
``(ix) 100 mg or more of flunitrazepam;''; and
(3) in subsection (b)(1)(C), by inserting ``or
flunitrazepam'' after ``I or II''.
(b) Import and Export Penalties.--
(1) Section 1009(a) of the Controlled Substances Import and
Export Act (21 U.S.C. 959(a)) is amended by inserting ``or
flunitrazepam'' after ``I or II''.
[[Page H11123]]
(2) Section 1010(b) of the Controlled Substances Import and
Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)) is amended--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (G);
(ii) by inserting ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (H);
(iii) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the following:
``(I) 1 gram or more of flunitrazepam;''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (G);
(ii) by inserting ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (H);
(iii) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the following:
``(I) 100 mg or more of flunitrazepam;'' and
(C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``or flunitrazepam''
after ``I or II,''.
(3) Section 1010(b)(4) of the Controlled Substances Import
and Export Act is amended by inserting ``(except a violation
involving flunitrazepam)'' after ``III, IV, or V,''.
SEC. 4. SENTENCING GUIDELINES.
Pursuant to its authority under section 994 of title 28,
United States Code, the United States Sentencing Commission
shall review and amend the sentencing guidelines for offenses
involving flunitrazepam. The Commission shall submit to
Congress a summary of its review, and an explanation for any
amendment to the sentencing guidelines made pursuant to this
section. In carrying out this section, the Commission shall
ensure that the sentencing guidelines for such offenses
reflect the serious nature of such offenses.
SEC. 5. STUDY ON RESCHEDULING FLUNITRAZEPAM.
The Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration
shall conduct a study on the appropriateness and desirability
of rescheduling flunitrazepam as a Schedule I controlled
substance under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801
et seq.), and shall consult with other Federal and State
agencies as appropriate. Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall
submit the results of such study, together with any
recommendations as to such rescheduling, to the Committees on
the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
SEC. 6. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM FOR POLICE DEPARTMENTS.
The Attorney General is authorized to create educational
materials regarding the use of controlled substances in the
furtherance of rapes and sexual assaults and disseminate
those materials to police departments throughout the United
States.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Florida [Mr. McCollum] and the gentleman from New York [Mr. Schumer]
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida [Mr. McCollum].
general leave
Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their
remarks on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, they call it ``the forget pill'' or ``the date-rape
drug.'' Technically known as flunitrazepam, better known by its trade
name Rohypnol, this inexpensive drug is being used by sexual predators
to incapacitate their victims before they are raped.
Rohypnol is colorless, odorless, tasteless and dissolves quickly and
easily in alcohol. In fact, alcohol enhances the drug's intoxicating
effects, and leaves the victim utterly helpless and vulnerable to rape.
Mr. Speaker, what makes the use of this drug even more vile and
contemptible is that victims are likely to suffer amnesia. This makes
it impossible for them to recount to law enforcement the circumstances
surrounding the rape. These victims suffer the knowledge that they have
been sexually assaulted--they just can't remember or explain how it
happened.
The distribution and abuse of this drug is a particularly big problem
in my home State of Florida, From 1990 to 1992, there were 14 State and
local law enforcement cases involving flunitrazepam, and the drug was
found almost exclusively in the Dade County area. By 1995, the number
of cases had escalated to in excess of 480. Moreover, as law
enforcement encounters indicate, the drug has now spread all over the
State of Florida.
This drug has been frequently found at nightclubs and college
parties. It is also horrifying to learn that distribution of this drug
has been discovered at junior and senior high schools--in Florida, as
well as in numerous other States. The drug has also been adopted by
street gang members across the country. In Texas, street gangs have
been known to administer Rohypnol to females in order to commit gang
rape as part of the initiation into a gang.
Although it is approved in other countries for short-term treatment
of anxiety and sleep disorders, this drug is not currently approved by
the Food and Drug Administration for marketing in the United States.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, Rohypnol is being
smuggled in from Mexico and other Latin America countries.
This drug is currently listed as a Schedule IV drug on the Controlled
Substances Act. Schedule IV drugs are drugs with accepted medical uses
and low potential for abuse. The DEA has suggested that the drug be
moved to Schedule I--which are drugs with no currently accepted medical
uses in the United States and which have a high potential for abuse.
The difficulty in deciding whether to reschedule flunitrazepam is that
the drug has some accepted medical uses--it is prescribed legally in 64
other countries. This bill will substantially increase the penalties
for manufacturing or distributing flunitrazepam, to give law
enforcement the muscle it needs to prosecute these cases. However, it
also directs the Administrator of the DEA to conduct a thorough study
on the appropriateness and desirability of rescheduling flunitrazepam
to a Schedule I controlled substance. The Administrator is given 6
months to conduct this study, and I fully expect Congress to revisit
this issue when that report is completed. As chairman of the Crime
Subcommittee, I intend to hold a hearing on the DEA's report shortly
after it's received.
It is entirely possible that other drugs may now exist, or may come
along in the future, which have the same properties as Rohypnol. This
legislation address those drugs, by making it illegal to posses a
controlled substance with the intent to administer that substance to
facilitate a crime of violence. If a victim is under the age of 14, the
penalties are even higher. This bill ensures that whatever new ``date-
rape drug'' may come along, the penalties are there for any sexual
predator who may try and use it.
The bill also directs the Sentencing Commission to recommend
additional penalties for the distribution of various quantities of
flunitrazepam, and authorizes the Attorney General to create
educational materials regarding the use of controlled substances in
furtherance of rapes.
Mr. Speaker, we have a short time left in this Congress, and it would
be a tragedy if we did not pass such a significant and important piece
of legislation. This bill can help put a stop to the abhorrent practice
of incapacitating woman for the purpose of sexual assault. I commend
the gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] for being the force
responsible for getting this bill to the floor today. I strongly urge
my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill, even though I believe
that it does not go far enough.
Mr. Speaker, this bill is aimed at an alarming growth in the domestic
abuse of a drug popularly known as ``the date rape drug.''
This drug, technically known as flunitrazepam is a sedative and a
hypnotic. Although it is marketed abroad, it is not legally available
in the United States.
It is marketed under a variety of trade names, the most widely used
being Roche Pharmaceutical's ``Rohypnol.'' It is known on the street by
slang names such as ``roofies,'' ``ropies,'' and ``ropes.''
Rohypnol enters this country through a variety of channels, and
substantial evidence of abuse has emerged. This abuse includes: use by
high school teenagers and college students to increase and prolong
highs from alcohol; use by heroin addicts to boost heroin highs; use by
cocaine users to parachute down from a cocaine binge, and use as an aid
in the commission of rape. This abuse has earned it the infamous names
of the date rape drug.
The use of Rohypnol in rape stems from the fact that the drug--
especially
[[Page H11124]]
in combination with other depressants--puts the victim in a virtual
stupor, with profound sedation, impaired motor control, and adversely
altered mental judgment and behavior. And it also induces amnesia, so
that the victim cannot accurately remember what happened to her.
Mr. Speaker, the bill before us is a watered down version of what the
full Judiciary Committee approved just last week. At that time, the
committee voted to raise the drug's classification from what is known
as schedule four--with relatively weak penalties--to schedule one--with
the toughest penalties applicable to any controlled substance.
Somehow, between then and today, the majority was persuaded to weaken
this bill, and to take out the rescheduling provision. There is no way
to describe this but a cave in to the demands of the pharmaceutical
industry.
I regret that the majority backed down in the face of heavy, behind-
the-scenes lobbying and brought this weak measure to the floor.
Nevertheless, because it does substantially increase penalties for
the use of controlled substances in crimes of violence, including rape,
I will support the measure and urge my colleagues to vote for it.
However, I hope that the next Congress, perhaps with a change in
leadership, will stand up to the special interests and get even tougher
on this dangerous drug. Maybe we will even do it without a change in
leadership because it is the right thing to do no matter who takes
over.
{time} 1845
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman
from Texas [Ms. Jackson-Lee].
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New
York, Mr. Schumer. And might I say that there is much to say about
this, but I will certainly contain my remarks.
This is a very serious matter that is made more serious by a recent
incident in my community. I hope this brings home the importance of
this legislation, albeit I am concerned with the mysterious way that it
has changed from being a schedule 4 circumstance to a schedule 1.
That is, a young lady, a teenager, healthy, academically inclined, an
athlete, respected in her community, had much life before her,
tragically lost her life in the last 2 months because of a so-called
date rape drug.
Having come home from a volleyball camp and just wanting to spend
some time with her friends at one of the local teenage clubs, where no
alcohol, might I say, was served, but having spent a few hours there
and drinking whatever the soft drinks were that were there, went home
around midnight and failed to wake up. The tragedy was even prolonged,
for it took a month before it was determined, the cause of death.
All of her family members were shocked. They certainly knew that this
was not a drug abuser, and they certainly knew that this young lady had
much to live for. But tragically, it was determined, after law
enforcement notified some of the officials dealing with the autopsy,
that they might just look into this so-called date rape drug, and there
it was, that this particular healthy teenager died because of a tragic
use of this type of drug.
So it is very important to recognize that we can say no, we can say,
just do not do it, but this is a drug that needs the pointed focus of
this House of Representatives.
The drug is odorless, it is colorless, it is tasteless, and it causes
sedation and euphoric effects within 15 minutes. In the instance in my
community, this young lady had a terrible headache. Afraid to tell her
parents what had happened, that she had been out when she should have
been at home, she tragically went to bed and did not wake up.
The effects are boosted further by alcohol use or marijuana. Most
offensively, this particular drug has become a tool of predators who
spike the drinks of unsuspecting young women and then rape them. In
this instance, that did not occur. But tragically, this is what occurs
on many occasions. So we must recognize the dangers of the Rohypnol
drug.
The FDA has begun the administrative process of moving this drug from
schedule 4 to schedule 1, to put the drug in the same category that
carries the same penalties as LSD and heroin. But, unfortunately, we
found that even after this bill passed through the Committee on the
Judiciary, it seems to have been reworded and reworked, and so this
drug today remains a schedule 4 drug, not because anyone actually
believes it is safe as the other schedule 4 drugs like Valium, but
because a drug company has successfully lobbied, to the detriment of
women and girls across the country.
I will simply say, Mr. Speaker, that I certainly have the confidence
that we will go back and correct this. I certainly hope the life of
this young, and vigorous young lady, does not go in vain. I also hope
that we add to this effort certainly the importance of prevention and
education, programs like the Safe and Drug-free Schools, DARE programs,
explaining to our teenagers that the utilization of any drug is not the
way to go, but recognizing that the date rape drug is usually dropped
on an unsuspecting victim.
It is important that we focus on this drug, focus on this
legislation, and in fact, maybe at another day, emphasize the level
that it should be at, which should be schedule 4.
I thank the gentleman for his kindness and his leadership, and I hope
that we can work together in a bipartisan manner, and I thank the
chairman for his work in passing this legislation through. I am just
concerned that we move it to a stronger penalty at this time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4137. Unfortunately,
violence against women is a major problem in our country today and one
of its most devastating forms is that of date rape. While this is an
issue that has plagued us for a long long time, it is the emergence of
a drug called Rohypnol, which was the catalyst for this legislation.
This legislation also applied to ``GHB'' another such drug that caused
the recent tragic death of a teenager in Texas.
To reiterate for my colleagues, Rohypnol is a drug used in many
foreign countries for the treatment of tension, stress and insomnia,
but it has not been certified for prescription in the United States.
This is a drug almost identical to other FDA approved drugs currently
prescribed by doctors in the U.S. and has several legitimate and
practical uses.
Regardless, like many other illegal drugs, it is now being smuggled
in from Mexico and South America and it is being used in the execution
of the most horrible crimes possible--those of sexual assault against
another person.
While this drug represents a particular problem within a larger issue
this bill is much broader since it criminalized the use of any
controlled substance with the intent to commit sexual assault. This
bill also sets stiff penalties for those who are convicted of such
crimes and attempts to protect children by inflicting prison sentences
of up to 20 years for those perpetrators whose victims are 14 years old
or younger.
I applaud the efforts of Mr. Solomon to address this dire social
issue at least partially, if not completely. For it cannot be refuted
that while Rohypnol is used for the purposes of sexual assault, its use
represents only a small fraction of sexual assaults.
Regardless, I support this bill and what it attempts to do. I stand
with the other Members on both sides of the aisle, in the fight against
violence against women, in whatever form it takes. This bill is only
another battle in the long, arduous war that we are fighting and that
we will one day win.
Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon], the author of this legislation.
Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman, and I commend the
chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime, the gentleman from Florida, Mr.
Bill McCollum, for the outstanding job he does as chairman of that
subcommittee and particularly for his support dealing with this heinous
crime of date rape.
I would also like to commend my colleague, the gentlewoman from New
York, Ms. Susan Molinari, for her recognition of this problem and her
cosponsorship of the bill to punish people who use this drug to commit
rapes.
Also, I would like to thank the gentleman from Georgia, Mr. Bob Barr,
for his support and the gentleman from North Carolina, Mr. Fred
Heineman, a young marine, 45 years ago, that went through boot camp
with me, for his assistance with this bill in the committee.
Unfortunately, Mr. Heineman is ill and recovering from surgery and
could not be here to lend his support tonight.
[[Page H11125]]
Mr. Speaker, the use of any illegal drug as a tool to commit sexual
battery and rape is as loathsome as using a weapon. It seems to me that
this kind of manipulative drug use is just as dangerous and just as
loathsome as holding a knife to someone's throat and should be dealt
with accordingly. That is what we are attempting to do with this
legislation.
In response to the growing use of date rape drugs and the use of
other drugs in violent sex crimes against women and children, the bill
before us today increases the penalties for anyone who possesses a drug
with the intent to commit a crime of violence, including sexual
battery. That is what this is all about.
Our bill increases the maximum penalty to 15 years in prison for
using any controlled substance to commit a crime of violence, and
greater penalties are imposed on someone who is sick enough to use the
drug to rape a vicitm 14 years of age and younger.
This legislation marks the first time, the very first time, the use
of a controlled substance will be viewed as a weapon anywhere in the
United States. That is the importance of this legislation. The stiffer
sentences in this bill focus on the criminal intent of the individual
possessing that drug.
Mr. Speaker, it is important to point out that illegal drugs have
been at the very root of the social ills facing our society today.
Consider this fact, Mr. Speaker: Approximately 75 percent of all of
the violent crimes in America today against women and children are drug
related, 75 percent. In other words, in three out of four violent
crimes against women and children, some irresponsible adult or juvenile
is getting high on drugs and then committing a despicable act against a
helpless woman or child.
That is bad enough. But this bill focuses on even more sinister
problems, another kind of low-life who uses drugs as a weapon against
unsuspecting, helpless women or young girls, someone who fully intends
to commit an act of sexual battery against another with the help of a
controlled substance. Mr. Speaker, there are literally dozens of drugs,
especially sedative, hypnotic drugs, that could be combined with
alcohol and used to commit such a crime.
Our bill is not limited to punishing one particular drug. There is no
single date rape drug. Earlier this year we heard the reports of how
the drug, Rohypnol, known on the streets as roofies, was being slipped
into the drinks of unsuspecting women with the intent to induce
extensive blackout periods and make them susceptible to sexual crimes
without them even knowing it. The use of this drug continues to be a
real concern for law enforcement, for drug counselors, for teachers and
parents.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, Rohypnol has merged
as a significant abuse and trafficking problem in the United States.
Between 1985 and 1991, the DEA experienced three cases or less each
year involving this drug, only three cases back during the years 1985
to 1991. By 1993, that number climbed to 15, primarily, as the chairman
of the subcommittee, Mr. Bill McCollum, said before, in Texas and
Florida. And by 1995, the DEA had 38 Rohypnol investigations. This
year, the DEA has initiated 108 cases and the U.S. Customs Service has
271 cases. So you can see the progression that is taking place now.
Given this disturbing trend, our bill increases the penalties for
possessing drugs like Rohypol to levels comparable to cocaine, heroin,
and LSD. The bill also requires the DEA to study whether Rohypnol
should be moved to schedule 1 and to submit a report to Congress with
its recommendations within 6 months. Regardless of the end result on
the side issue of rescheduling, the public at large will be protected
now with stiffer penalties imposed for possession of roofies.
Mr. Speaker, any drug like Rohypol that is odorless, colorless,
tasteless, which renders someone defenseless, potentially could be the
next date rape drug. For instance, I have an article which appeared in
the September 11 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle. This article
describes how a young 17-year-old girl died after someone slipped a
drug called gamma y-hydroxybutyrate into her drink.
That particular drug is not even a controlled substance; it is an
allowed drug in this country. Yet that drug is an odorless and almost
tasteless drug that was slipped into an unsuspecting victim's drink,
and, in this sad case, she did not even survive. This is exactly why we
must have an approach that is broader that just one drug. This is why
we must be careful not to fool ourselves by branding a particular the
date rape drug. We need to go after all of them.
The bill before us today is a common sense, tough response by this
Congress to protect the safety and sanctity of young women and
children. It sends a very powerful message to any sex offender,
anywhere, and any other violent criminal, for that matter, that you
will get the book thrown at you for using these kinds of drugs in
committing a crime of rape.
So on behalf of Congressman Fred Heineman, the major cosponsor of
this bill, and Chairman Bill McCollum, I ask Members to vote yes on
this vital legislation that will stop this heinous crime of date rape.
I really do appreciate the support of Bob Barr, who now has taken over
management of this bill, for his strong support for the bill.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, much has been said quite eloquently, most recently by
the gentleman from New York, about the background of this legislation
and why it is necessary. I would simply like to take a few moments to
commend him, to commend the chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime, Mr.
McCollum, to commend the other cosponsors of this legislation on both
sides of the aisle, for putting forward a piece of legislation in a
bipartisan manner with broad-ranging support which it deserves.
Mr. Speaker, the ability or the imagination of drug abusers and
criminals to figure out or fashion or come up with or imagine new ways
of using controlled substances, mind-altering drugs, that is, is
unfortunately limitless. The Congress of the United States, therefore,
Mr. Speaker, needs to be vigilant in working with our law enforcement
officials to identify these new problems as they develop, not all of
which can be foreseen, to maintain the flexibility to meet the
challenges posed by new and dangerous uses of drugs and the development
of new drugs, given the state of technology to manufacture new drugs.
{time} 1900
We have to do so, Mr. Speaker, in a way that addresses a specific
problem yet maintains the proper jurisdictional bases and the proper
concept of federalism in the developing of that new legislation to meet
these new challenges posed to law enforcement.
This piece of legislation before us today, Mr. Speaker, is a textbook
example, I believe, of how to responsibly meet that challenge in a very
timely manner and without running afoul of important concepts of
federalism. A problem was identified. It has become a crisis to law
enforcement. They have come to the Congress, citizens have come to this
Congress, and said there is a problem here, please help us. We have met
that challenge in a bipartisan manner, Mr. Speaker, in a way that does
not expand Federal jurisdiction. It just recognizes that there is a new
facet of existing Federal jurisdiction.
I was very honored last week to propose this amendment to a piece of
legislation then under consideration in the Committee on the Judiciary,
and working with the gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon], with the
gentleman from Florida [Mr. McCollum], with the gentlewoman [Mrs.
Schroeder], and with others, we were able to present this matter to the
Committee on the Judiciary in such a way so that it obtained the
support by voice of that great committee.
We have before us today that piece of legislation, which obviously
has bipartisan support, as it enjoyed bipartisan last week in the
Committee on the Judiciary, and I would ask for its favorable
consideration.
Mrs. KELLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4137,
legislation which seeks to addressing the growing and disturbing
problem of drug-induced date rape.
Mr. Speaker, rape, regardless of the circumstances, is a terrible act
of violence
[[Page H11126]]
against women. But what is particularly troubling is a growing trend of
sexual violence against women who are unknowingly drugged and then
sexually assaulted. Sexual predators have found a dangerous weapon in
certain kinds of drugs, and we must recognize and respond to this
growing problem.
H.R. 4137 will increase criminal penalties for the possession of
certain drugs with the intent to use them to commit crimes of violence,
including rape, against another person. The bill puts special emphasis
on a drug known as Rohypnol or ``roofies,'' which is commonly used in
date rape cases, and also directs the Justice Department to make
available educational materials on the use of drugs in rape and sexual
assault cases.
Mr. Speaker, the Drug-Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act
sends a clear message that we will not tolerate crimes of violence
against women. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this
important legislation.
Ms. DUNN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, a special thanks to Mr. Solomon,
Ms. Molinari and all of my colleagues who worked so diligently to move
this legislation forward.
As my colleagues know, the incidence of violence and crime against
women continues to escalate daily. Criminals and would-be criminals
keep finding new ways to victimize women. This bill represents one of
the many steps that need to be taken in order to help stop the
violation of innocent women. I urge my colleagues to take this vital
stride forward.
First and foremost this legislation would impose tough minimum
sentences on first-time offenders who distribute what are referred to
as ``date-rape drugs'' with the intent to rape. This is only right, Mr.
Speaker. These drugs render women helpless. When criminals administer
drugs like Rohypnol, their victims are not aware it has been added to
their drink because the drug is tasteless and odorless. Rohypnol is
intended for use in treating people with severe sleep disorders and is
10 times more powerful than Valium. Unfortunately, it can induce
amnesia as a side effect, which in date-rape cases obviously impairs
the victim's ability to relay what transpired and to recall who raped
them. Rapists prefer Rohypnol because it is fact-acting. It's effects
begin within 30 minutes, peak within 2 hours and may persist up to 8
hours or more. Often times, the effects have lasted as much as 24 hours
after ingestion.
Mr. Solomon's ``Drug-Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act''
proposes minimum sentences of not less than 20 years for Rohypnol
traffickers and would-be rapists.
Mr. Speaker, this stiff penalty is justified to combat this problem.
No parent should have to send a daughter off to college afraid that she
might be drugged and victimized by a rapist. We should give those
parents whose children have left home reassurance that we have done all
we can to deter this criminal behavior.
No woman should have to worry about this heinous act affecting her
life. No woman should live in fear that the next beverage she consumes
will render her a defenseless victim. That is why this House should
stand up today, for women across the country, and say to the cowardly
individuals who commit this crime: no more. We must establish zero-
tolerance for rape and the use of drugs to commit rape.
I urge passage of this important bill.
Mr. BLILEY. Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 4137. We recently
have heard several tragic instances of women being sexually assaulted
after their drinks were laced with potent sedative drugs. The bill
imposes stiff penalties for the unlawful distribution and trafficking
of Rohypnol and extends criminal penalties to anyone convicted of using
a controlled substance with the intent to commit a sexual battery.
I support the legislation; however, I must point out that the bill
has not been fully considered by the committees of jurisdiction. H.R.
4137 was referred to both the Committee on the Judiciary and the
Committee on Commerce. Neither committee had an opportunity to report
the bill. Given the limited time remaining in this session of Congress,
and the importance of this issue, I will not object to this bill moving
forward. In doing so, however, the Committee on Commerce in no way is
yielding any of its jurisdiction on this and other similar matters.
Mrs. FOWLER. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in support
of this important measure. This is an issue that is too important for
politics--especially for someone like me, who has a college-aged
daughter.
Drug-induced date rape is the ultimate crime of cowardice. It is
intolerable, and this bill sends the message that it will not be
tolerated--regardless of what drug is used.
By most accounts, Rohypnol is currently the drug of choice for sex
offenders. It is powerful, it is odorless, it is tasteless, and it is
cheap. This issue is not just confined to Rohypnol, however: Alcohol
has always been and probably will remain the primary date-rape drug.
The real problem here is sex offenders--and we know that if they
cannot get Rohypnol they will use something else. That is why H.R. 4137
applies schedule I penalties for the possession of Rohypnol, and also
imposes tough penalties on sex offenders who use other drugs to render
their victims helpless. Think about your daughters and support this
bill.
Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Dickey). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Florida [Mr. McCollum] that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4137.
The question was taken.
Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 5 of rule I and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
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