[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 149 (Thursday, October 30, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11456-S11457]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. TORRICELLI (for himself and Mr. Lautenberg):
  S. 1346. A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to increase 
the penalties for certain offenses in which the victim is a child; to 
the Committee on the Judiciary.


                         JOAN'S LAW ACT OF 1997

  Mr. TORRICELLI. Mr. President, I am introducing this bill today, 
along with my colleague from New Jersey Senator Lautenberg, on behalf 
of Rosemarie D'Alessandro, the mother of a young girl murdered some 24 
years ago in New Jersey.
  Mrs. D'Alessandro's 7-year-old daughter Joan was delivering Girl 
Scout cookies down the street from her Hillsdale home one day when 
Joseph McGowan, a high school chemistry teacher, destroyed her life and 
changed the lives of her family members forever. McGowan raped Joan, 
killed her, and dumped her broken, battered body in a ravine some 15 
miles away--she was not found for 3 full days.
  For Joan's mom, Rosemarie, that shattering event was only the 
beginning of what would become a literal lifetime of trauma, pain and 
distress. Although the man who murdered Joan was put away for life, he 
has already had two parole hearings and is scheduled for another in 
2003.
  And Rosemarie D'Alessandro cannot rest while these hearings go on. To 
make sure this murderer remains behind bars, Rosemarie must fight each 
and every day against the system that might free him, and must sit 
through appeal after appeal when he is denied release.
  But rather than becoming consumed with the tragedy that stole her 
daughter from her, Rosemarie D'Alessandro has used her grief and her 
anger to accomplish an astonishing goal--Joan's Law is now in the books 
in New Jersey, and now any child molester who murders a child under 14 
in my State must receive life in prison without the possibility of 
parole. Rosemarie D'Alessandro stood up and told the world ``enough is 
enough.'' No other family should have to bear the double tragedy of 
suffering the loss of a child and then being forced to relive it over 
and over again through parole hearings and appeals. And no other family 
in New Jersey will ever have to again.
  Well, we do not have parole in the Federal system, but we can make 
sure that anyone who molests or commits a serious, violent crime 
against a child 14 or under will serve the rest of his life behind bars 
if that child dies. My bill states that any person who is convicted of 
a Federal offense defined as a serious violent felony should be 
sentenced either to death or imprisonment for life when the victim of 
the crime is under 14 years of age and dies as a result of the offense.
  Mr. President, with this bill, we intend to send the strongest 
possible message to anyone who would dare molest or attack a vulnerable 
child--do so at your own risk, because we will find you and we will put 
you behind bars for the rest of your life if that child dies. I hope my 
colleagues will quickly join me and Senator Lautenberg in passing this 
legislation, so that the inevitable tragedies that happen to children 
throughout America every day will no longer be compounded upon the 
families of those victims.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1346

       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 ``Joan's Law Act of 1997''.

     SEC. 2. DEATH OR LIFE IN PRISON FOR CERTAIN OFFENSES WHOSE 
                   VICTIMS ARE CHILDREN.

       Section 3559 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(d) Death or Life Imprisonment for Crimes Against 
     Children.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a 
     person who is convicted of a Federal offense that is a 
     serious violent felony (as defined in subsection (c)) or a 
     violation of section 2251 shall, unless a sentence of death 
     is imposed, be sentenced to imprisonment for life, if the 
     victim of the offense--
       ``(1) is less than 14 years of age at the time of the 
     offense; and
       ``(2) dies as a result of the offense.''.

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, when a child is murdered, families are 
devastated and communities are rocked to their very core. When a 
murderer is prosecuted, grieving parents and siblings are forced to 
relive the often brutal details of the most profound tragedy 
imaginable. And, if a conviction is obtained, in too many instances, 
the families of a young victim must repeatedly relieve the crime every 
time the murderer goes before a parole board.
  The families of murder victims, especially murdered children, need 
closure. They need to know that they can put the horror and a tragedy 
behind them. They need to know that they can begin rebuilding their 
lives. But most importantly, they need to know that the person 
responsible for the crime will never bring harm and grief to another 
family.
  This is why, Mr. President, I am today joining my colleague from New 
Jersey, Senator Torricelli, in introducing legislation that will 
significantly increase the penalties on criminals convicted of a 
Federal crime where a child under the age of 14 is killed during the 
commission of that crime. I also want to commend and acknowledge 
Congressman Bob Franks, also from New Jersey, who introduced similar 
legislation in the House.
  Mr. President, this legislation is a Federal companion for an 
important New Jersey law called Joan's Law.

[[Page S11457]]

Joan's Law was named after a 7-year-old New Jersey girl, Joan 
D'Alessandro, who was raped and murdered in 1973. Joan's murderer, a 
man who lived across State lines and actually had the gall to 
participate in the family's desperate search for their missing 
daughter, was located, convicted of the crime, and sentenced to 20 
years in State prison. He is now eligible for parole, and has twice 
sought release since his incarceration.
  To their horror, frustration, and understandable anger, Joan's family 
has repeatedly had to fight parole for this cruel killer. They have 
been forced to relive this tragedy again and again and to beg that 
others be protected from the brutal individual who ripped apart their 
family.
  The bill we are introducing today will impose a similar, equally 
severe and necessary penalty--life imprisonment--on anyone convicted of 
committing a Federal crime where a child, 14 years of age or younger, 
dies as a result of that crime.
  The bill sends a strong message that our society will not tolerate 
nor forgive the brutal acts of a criminal who takes a young life. This 
bill sends the message in no uncertain terms that society will take the 
steps necessary to protect itself from cold-blooded killers who 
victimize children. This bill will help to protect all of our families 
and children from the repeat offenders who, all too often, insinuate 
themselves into our communities and prey on defenseless children.
  Mr. President, I urge all of my colleagues to join with Senator 
Torricelli and I in support of this bill and to work for its fast 
enactment.
                                 ______