[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 142 (Friday, October 4, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H12275-H12276]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        DRUG-INDUCED RAPE PREVENTION AND PUNISHMENT ACT OF 1996

  Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the 
Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 4137) to combat drug-facilitated crimes 
of violence, including sexual assaults, with a Senate amendment 
thereto, and concur in the Senate amendment.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The Clerk read the Senate amendment, as follows:

       Senate amendment:
       Strike out all after the enactment clause and insert:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Drug-Induced Rape Prevention 
     and Punishment Act of 1996''.

     SEC. 2. PROVISIONS RELATING TO USE OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE 
                   WITH INTENT TO COMMIT A CRIME OF VIOLENCE.

       (A) Penalties for Distribution.--Section 401(b) of the 
     Controlled Substances Act is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(7) Penalties for distribution.--
       ``(A) In general.--Whoever, with intent to commit a crime 
     of violence, as defined in section 16 of title 18, United 
     States Code (including rape), against an individual, violates 
     subsection (a) by distributing a controlled substance to that 
     individual without that individual's knowledge, shall be 
     imprisoned not more than 20 years and fined in accordance 
     with title 18, United States Code.
       ``(B) Definition.--For purposes of this paragraph, the term 
     `without that individuals's knowledge' means that the 
     individual is unaware that a substance with the ability to 
     alter that individual's ability to appraise conduct or to 
     decline participation in or communicate unwillingness to 
     participate in conduct is administered to the individual.''.
       (b) Additional Penalties Relating to Flunitrazepam.--
       (1) General penalties.--Section 401 of the Controlled 
     Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841) is amended--
       (A) in subsection (b)(1)(C), by inserting ``, or 1 gram of 
     flunitrazepam,'' after ``I or II''; and
       (B) in subsection (b)(1)(D), by inserting ``or 30 
     milligrams of flunitrazepam,'' after ``schedule III,''.
       (2) Import and export penalties.--
       (A) 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''.
       (B) Section 1010(b)(3) of the Controlled Substances Import 
     and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)) is amended by inserting 
     ``or flunitrazepam,'' after ``I or II,''.
       (C) 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,''.
       (3) Sentencing guidelines.--
       (A) Amendment of sentencing guidelines.--Pursuant to its 
     authority under section 994 of title 28, United States Code, 
     the United States Sentencing Commission shall review and 
     amend, as appropriate, the sentencing guidelines for offenses 
     involving flunitrazepam.
       (B) Summary.--The United States Sentencing Commission shall 
     submit to the Congress--
       (i) a summary of its review under subparagraph (A); and
       (ii) an explanation for any amendment to the sentencing 
     guidelines made under subparagraph (A).
       (C) Serious nature of offenses.--In carrying out this 
     paragraph, the United States Sentencing Commission shall 
     ensure that the sentencing guidelines for offenses involving 
     flunitrazepam reflect the serious nature of such offenses.
       (c) Increased Penalties for Unlawful Simple Possession of 
     Flunitrazepam.--Section 404(a) of the Controlled Substances 
     Act (21 U.S.C. 844(a)) is amended by inserting after 
     ``exceeds 1 gram.'' the following: ``Notwithstanding any 
     penalty provided in this subsection, any person convicted 
     under this subsection for the possession of flunitrazepam 
     shall be imprisoned for not more than 3 years, shall be fined 
     as otherwise provided in this section or both.''.

     SEC. 3. STUDY ON RESCHEDULING FLUNITRAZEPAM.

       (a) Study.--The Administrator of the Drug Enforcement 
     Administration shall, in consultation with other Federal and 
     State agencies, as appropriate, 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.).
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the 
     Committees on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives 
     and the Senate the results of the study conducted under 
     subsection (a), together with any recommendations regarding 
     rescheduling of flunitrazepam as a Schedule I controlled 
     substance under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 
     et seq.).

     SEC. 4. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM FOR POLICE DEPARTMENTS.

       The Attorney General may--
       (1) create educational materials regarding the use of 
     controlled substances (as that term is defined in section 102 
     of the Controlled Substances Act) in the furtherance of rapes 
     and sexual assaults; and
       (2) disseminate those materials to police departments 
     throughout the United States.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (during the reading). Without objection, the 
Senate amendment is considered as read and printed in the Record.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the original request 
of the gentleman from New York?
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Reserving the right to object, Mr. Speaker, I yield 
to the gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] to further explain the 
bill.
  (Mr. SOLOMON asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, I certainly thank the gentlewoman and I 
will say one more time, this will be the

[[Page H12276]]

last day that she will participate in a session on this floor. She has 
been here longer than I have and she is certainly one of the most 
outstanding and respected Members of this body, even though we have had 
our differences over the years. But we wish her well in her new 
endeavors, she and her family.
  Mr. Speaker, the amendments made in the Senate are reasonable and 
they do strengthen the bill. I readily accept the amendments and urge 
House approval of the amended bill.
  In response to the growing use of date rape drugs and the use of 
other drugs in violent sex crimes against women, this bill before us 
today increases the penalty for anyone who possesses a drug with the 
intent to commit a crime of violence, including sexual battery. The 
bill comes not a moment too soon. Recently in the San Francisco 
Chronicle they reported how a 17-year-old young woman who played 
varsity volleyball died after someone slipped a date rape drug into her 
drink.
  The additional penalties in this bill will fight crimes just like 
this one. It will for the first time ever make using a drug to commit 
the crime of rape as a weapon a minimum sentence felony. So the bill is 
a good bill, and I would certainly urge that the committee adopt it 
unanimously.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend the distinguished majority leader, Trent Lott, 
for his support of my bill in the Senate and also Senators Hatch and 
Coverdell for all their hard work in this important legislation.
  The amendments made in the Senate are reasonable and strengthen the 
bill. I readily accept the amendments and urge House approval of the 
amended bill.
  Ladies and gentleman, in response to the growing use of date-rape 
drugs and the use of other drugs in violent sex crimes against women, 
the bill before us today (H.R. 4137) increases the penalties for anyone 
who possesses a drug with the intent to commit a crime of violence, 
including sexual battery.
  This bill comes not a moment too soon. Recently, the San Francisco 
Chronicle reported how a 17-year-old young woman who played varsity 
volleyball died after someone slipped a date rape drug into her drink. 
The additional penalties in this bill will fight crimes just like this 
one.
  This is a commonsense, tough response by Congress to protect the 
safety of our young people.
  Now that Congress has responded to the issue of the date rape drug, 
it is up to the President to make this important public safety 
legislation into law.
  I include the following for the Record:

           [From the San Francisco Chronicle, Sept. 11, 1996]

               Date Rape Drug Linked to Mysterious Death

       La Porte, TX.--A high school student who died mysteriously 
     last month was killed by an illegal ``date rape drug'' that 
     was slipped into her soft drink, police said.
       Hillory Farias, 17, a varsity volleyball player, was found 
     unconscious and not breathing the morning of August 4 after a 
     night out with girlfriends.
       Authorities at first were puzzled by her death because 
     tests showed no drugs or alcohol in her body; but they ruled 
     the death a homicide Monday after finding gamma y-
     hydroxybutyrate, also known as GHB, which--like the better-
     known date-rape drug Rohypnol--is odorless and almost 
     tasteless.
       Date rape drugs, which cause dizziness, drowsiness and 
     memory loss, sometimes are used to incapacitate women so they 
     can more easily be sexually assaulted.

  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Further reserving the right to object, Mr. Speaker, I 
want to congratulate this body and the gentleman from New York for 
reporting this bill and getting it out. It is absolutely urgent. I am 
pleased with the educational parts of it; I am pleased that the 
mandatory minimums went away.
  The one change that it had that I wish we had retained was in our 
committee we had raised this drug to a schedule 1 level and it is no 
longer at that level, although they did increase the penalties. We want 
to be as tough as possible on it. I know some of the drug companies 
balked and so we have a little difference here. But we will not object 
because it is certainly better than where we are and this has become a 
crisis on some of our campuses. So I think it is important that we get 
this out.
  Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the original request 
of the gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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