[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 76 (Friday, June 12, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6295-S6296]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. WYDEN (for himself and Mr. Smith of Oregon):
S. 2169. A bill to encourage States to require a holding period for
any student expelled for bringing a gun to school; to the Committee on
the Judiciary.
gun legislation
Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, these tragic incidents involving students
bringing guns to school have taught us that we must proceed on two
tracks. Government's first responsibility is to protect our citizens,
particularly our young people, from violence. The only way to do that
when a student brings a gun to school is to get them out of the
classroom, off the streets, and in front of someone who is in the best
position to determine what steps to take. The legislation I am
introducing today with Senator Gordon Smith will help that happen.
Mr. President, all over my state people are calling out for help. The
Springfield Chief of Police and the Governor both recognize that the
way we currently deal with kids and guns is not working. These kids are
slipping through the cracks--only to resurface in deadly and dangerous
ways. Mr. President, our current policies are not working. They are not
serving anyone. Simply put, when it comes to kids bringing guns to
school, we can and must do a better job. We must stop the violence
before it spreads across one more school yard. The memorial fence at
Thurston High School is the last memorial fence I ever want to see--in
Springfield, Oregon, in Pearl Mississippi, in Jonesboro, Arkansas--or
anywhere else in the country. Let it end here.
Today, Senator Smith and I are introducing legislation that
encourages states to pass laws to require a student who brings a gun to
school to be held for up to 72 hours and undergo a psychological
evaluation. If a state adopts such a law, the state would be eligible
for an increase of 25% in the Juvenile Justice funds that would enable
it to provide the type of psychological evaluation and other treatment
that such a student needs.
Bringing a gun to school is a warning sign that must be taken
seriously. And while so-called ``zero tolerance policies'' that mandate
a student be expelled for bringing a gun to school may adequately
punish the behavior, they are clearly not enough. We must offer
services to this student--see what is going on in that student's head
and help them through the rough spots. We must find a balance between
preventing these crimes from occurring and punishing them once they do.
Voters in Oregon are tough on juvenile crime, especially serious
crimes. We have the minimum sentences. We have the prisons. We do not
allow juveniles probation or parole. We do not release juveniles early
for good behavior. What Oregon needs is a system that works from the
beginning--when the warning signs appear, not just at the end, when
harm has been done. Oregon needs resources to identify these kids and
help them before there's an arrest to be made. Across the country the
message is spoken loud and clear: punishment, while important, is only
part of the solution. It does not save lives. Prevention does.
Mr. President, my bill will help communities better identify and
service students at-risk of endangering themselves or others with a
firearm. My bill gives everyone involved--teachers, public school
administrators, law enforcement, police officers and juvenile justice
professions--the tools they need to get a troubled student the help he
or she needs. Under the State laws my bill would promote, when a
student brings a gun to school, the public school must report this
behavior to law enforcement and the juvenile authorities immediately.
Police must then come to the school and determine if there is probable
cause to take action. If there is cause to take action, the police must
bring the student into the station for two purposes: first, the student
must have a mental health professional give him or her a psychological
evaluation, and second, the student must immediately be scheduled for a
judicial hearing. The State has up to 72 hours to complete these
intervention measures. States pass a law following these parameters
will receive a significant bonus: they will receive 25 percent more
money to spend on juvenile prevention and intervention services.
Mr. President, no one wishes to see the tragedy at Thurston High
School repeated. It is my hope that this legislation will give States
the incentive they need to enact tough preventative detention laws to
assure that this doesn't happen again. I ask unanimous consent that my
statement and a copy 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. 2169
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. HOLDING PERIOD FOR STUDENTS BRINGING A GUN TO
SCHOOL.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 222 of the
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42
U.S.C. 5632) or any
[[Page S6296]]
other provision of law, for fiscal year 2000 and each fiscal
year thereafter, the amount that would otherwise be allocated
to a State under that section for a fiscal year shall be
increased by 25 percent, if the State has in effect a State
law described in subsection (b) by not later than the first
day of that fiscal year. Any additional amount made available
to a State under this subsection may be used by the State for
prevention and intervention programs related to school
violence.
(b) State Law Described.--A State law is described in this
subsection if it requires that--
(1) any administrator or employee of a public or private
school who has reasonable cause to believe that a student is
or has been in possession of a firearm while in or on the
premises of a school building in violation of Federal or
State law, shall immediately report the student's conduct to
an appropriate law enforcement agency and to an appropriate
juvenile department or agency of the State;
(2) upon receipt of a report under paragraph (1), the
appropriate law enforcement agency shall immediately cause an
investigation to be made to determine whether there is
probable cause to believe that the student, while in or on
the premises of a public building, possessed a firearm in
violation of Federal or State law;
(3) if a determination of probable cause is made under
paragraph (2)--
(A) the student shall immediately be detained by the
appropriate law enforcement agency for not more than 72 hours
in an appropriate juvenile justice setting for purposes of
psychological evaluation and for a judicial determination
(pursuant to a hearing) regarding whether the student is a
danger to himself or herself or to others; and
(B) a parent, guardian, or other adult with responsibility
for the student shall be notified of that detention and the
purposes of that detention; and
(4) if the court makes a determination under paragraph
(3)(A) that the student is a danger to himself or herself or
others, the student shall be placed in an appropriate
juvenile justice setting to receive professional
psychological counseling.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out
this section.
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