[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 89 (Wednesday, July 12, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S6570]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         PROJECT EXILE: THE SAFE STREETS AND NEIGHBORHOODS ACT

  Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, there has been a lot of talk recently in 
this country about gun control. It is no secret that gun control 
measures are very controversial and are subject to a great deal of 
debate--as they should be. But, we have to remember that in the heat of 
this debate, we must not lose sight of the real issue at hand--and 
that's gun violence. There is nothing controversial about protecting 
our children, our families, our communities by keeping guns out of the 
wrong hands--keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and violent 
offenders--not law-abiding citizens, Mr. President, but criminals.
  These criminals with guns are killing our children. They're killing 
our young adults. They're killing our friends and our neighbors. I am 
here on the floor today because I am very troubled by this, Mr. 
President, and I am troubled by the current Administration's handling 
of crimes committed with guns. Let me explain.
  Right now, current law makes it a federal crime for a convicted felon 
to ever possess a firearm. So, once a person is convicted of a felony, 
that person can never again own a gun. It is against federal law to use 
a gun to commit any crime, regardless of if that crime is otherwise a 
state crime. And, under federal law, the sentences for these kinds of 
crimes are mandatory--no second chance, no parole.
  In the late 1980's, President Bush made enforcement of these gun laws 
a priority. His Justice Department told local sheriffs, chiefs of 
police, and prosecutors that if they caught a felon with a gun--or if 
they caught someone committing a crime in which a gun was used--the 
federal government would take the case, and put that criminal behind 
bars for at least five years--no exceptions. During the last 18 months 
of the Bush Administration, more than 2,000 criminals with guns were 
put behind bars.
  Consistent, effective enforcement ended once the current 
Administration took office. Between 1992 and 1998, for example, the 
number of gun cases filed for prosecution dropped from 7,048 to about 
3,807--that's a 46 percent decrease. As a result, the number of federal 
criminal convictions for firearms offenses has fallen dramatically.
  For six years, the Justice Department refused to prosecute those 
criminals who use a gun to commit state crimes--even though the use of 
a gun to commit those crimes could be charged as a federal crime. The 
only cases they would prosecute were those in which a federal crime was 
already being committed and a gun was used in the commission of that 
crime.
  Even worse, to this very day, some federal gun laws are almost never 
enforced by this Administration. While Brady law background checks have 
stopped nearly 300,000 prohibited purchasers of firearms from buying 
guns, less than .1 percent have actually been prosecuted.
  I have repeatedly questioned Attorney General Reno and her deputies 
about the decline in prosecutions, and their standard response is that 
the Department of Justice is focusing on so-called ``high-level'' 
offenders, instead of ``low-level'' offenders, who commit one crime 
with a gun. They say that they want to prosecute the few sharks at the 
top rather than the numerous guppies at the bottom of the criminal 
enterprise. With all due respect, that's nonsense.
  Attorney General Reno recently said that she would aggressively 
prosecute armed criminals, but only if they commit a violent crime. 
Again, that type of law enforcement policy just doesn't make sense. 
Current law prohibits violent felons from possessing guns, and so we 
should aggressively prosecute these cases to take guns away from 
violent criminals--before they use those guns to injure and kill 
people. It's that simple.
  Mr. President, we have often heard that six percent of the criminals 
commit 70 percent of the crimes--six percent of the criminals commit 70 
percent of the crimes. Well, if you have a violent criminal who 
illegally possesses a gun, I can bet you that he is part of that six 
percent! He's one of the bad guys--and we should put him away before he 
has a chance to use that gun again.
  Mr. President, we need to take all of these armed criminals off the 
streets. That is how we can reduce crime and save lives. Why wait for 
armed criminals to commit more and more heinous crimes before we 
prosecute them to the full extent of the law? Why wait, when we can do 
something before another Ohioan--or any American--becomes a victim of 
gun violence?

  We shouldn't wait, Mr. President. That's why the House of 
Representatives recently passed legislation that would increase gun 
prosecutions. And that's why, along with a number of my colleagues, 
including Senators Abraham, Santorum, Warner, Sessions, Helms, 
Ashcroft, and Hutchinson from Arkansas, we have introduced the 
companion to the House-passed bill--a bill that offers the kind of 
practical solution we need to thwart gun crimes.
  Our bill--called ``Project Exile: The Safe Streets and Neighbors Act 
of 2000''--would provide $100 million in grants over five years to 
those states that agree to enact their own mandatory minimum five-year 
jail sentences for armed criminals who use or possess an illegal gun. 
As an alternative, a state can also qualify for the grants by turning 
armed criminals over for federal prosecution under existing firearms 
laws. Therefore, a state has the option of prosecuting armed felons in 
state or federal courts. Qualifying states can use their grants for any 
variety of purposes that would strengthen their criminal or juvenile 
justice systems' ability to deal with violent criminals.
  This approach works, Mr. President. In Virginia, for example, the 
state instituted a program in 1997, also called ``Project Exile.'' 
Their program is based on one simple principle: Any criminal caught 
with a gun will serve a minimum mandatory sentence of five years in 
prison. Period. End of story. As a result, gun-toting criminals are 
being prosecuted six times faster, and serving sentences up to four 
times longer than they otherwise would under state law. Moreover, the 
homicide rate in Richmond already has dropped 40 percent!
  Every state should have the opportunity to implement Project Exile in 
their high-crime communities. The bill that we have introduced will 
make this proven, commonsense approach to reducing gun violence 
available to every state. It will take guns out of the hands of violent 
criminals. It will make our neighborhoods safer. It will save lives.
  I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support and pass 
this legislation. It's time to protect our children, our families, and 
our country from armed and dangerous criminals. It's time to get guns 
out of the wrong hands. It's time we take back our neighborhoods and 
our communities from the criminals and take action to stop gun-toting 
criminals.

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