[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 113 (Tuesday, September 10, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8458-S8462]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. HATCH (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Hutchinson, Mrs.
Hutchison, Mr. Sessions, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Thurmond, Mr.
Grassley, and Ms. Landrieu):
S. 2917. A bill to enhance national efforts to investigate,
prosecute, and prevent crimes against children by increasing
investigatory tools, criminal penalties, and resources and by extending
existing laws; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, this summer we were all devastated by the
repeated news flashes reporting violent crimes against children across
our Nation. In June, Elizabeth Smart, a 14 year old from my home town
of Salt Lake City, UT, was kidnapped at gun point from her home. To
date, neither Elizabeth nor her abductor has been found.
In July, five-year-old Samantha Runnion was kidnapped while playing
with a neighborhood friend down the street from her home in Stanton,
CA. The following day, her body was found along a highway, nearly 50
miles from her home. California authorities have charged a man, who
reportedly was acquitted just 2 years ago of molesting two girls under
the age of 14, with Runnion's abduction, sexual assault and murder.
Elizabeth Smart and Samantha Runnion are just two, among many, recent
child victims. The list of tragic cases goes on and on.
These horrific incidents illustrate the need for comprehensive
legislation, at both the State and national level, to protect our
children. We need to ensure that our law enforcement officers have all
the tools and resources they need to find, prosecute, and punish those
who commit crimes against our children.
Earlier this year, with Senators Leahy, Sessions, Hutchinson,
Brownback, Edwards and DeWine, I introduced S. 2520, the ``PROTECT Act
of 2002''. This bill plugged a loophole that existed as a result of a
recent Supreme Court decision which struck down key provisions in the
``Child Pornography Prevention Act,'' which I authored and Congress
passed in 1996. Among other things, the PROTECT Act prevents child
pornographers from escaping prosecution by claiming that their sexually
explicit material did not involve real children. Where child
pornography includes persons who appear virtually indistinguishable
from actual minors, prosecutions can still occur unless a defendant
shows that the pornography did not involve a minor.
Today I rise to introduce with my colleagues, Senators Feinstein,
Hutchinson, Hutchison, Sessions, DeWine, Thurmond and Grassley, the
``Comprehensive Child Protection Act of 2002,'' which enhances child
crime prosecutions, investigatory tools, penalties and resources in a
variety of ways. For the record, I will submit a section by section
summary of the bill, but allow me to comment briefly on some of the
bill's specific provisions.
First, and most significantly, the bill creates a National Crimes
Against Children Response Center. The recent series of tragic events
involving child victims has convinced me that we need to take a more
proactive approach to prevent, deter and prosecute child predators
of all types, abusers, molesters, pornographers and traffickers. And at
the same time, we need to provide our children, the vulnerable victims
of such predators, with the support systems they need to recover fully
from such horrendous crimes and to assist law enforcement in
effectively investigating and prosecuting these crimes.
To this end, our bill directs the Federal Bureau of Investigation to
establish a National Response Center whose primary mission will be to
develop a comprehensive and rapid response plan to reported crimes
involving the victimization of children. While the Center is to be
established by the FBI in consultation with the Deputy Assistant
Attorney General for the new Department of Justice Crimes Against
Children Section created by the bill, it will integrate the resources
and expertise of other Federal, State, and local law enforcement
agencies, as well as other child services professionals. By forming and
training rapid response teams comprised of Federal, State and local
prosecutors, investigators, victim witness specialists, mental health
and other child services professionals, the Center will greatly enhance
our national response and prevention efforts. The combination of
valuable expertise and resources provided by such multi-jurisdictional
and multi-disciplinary partnerships will increase the likelihood that
law enforcement authorities will successfully identify, prosecute and
punish child predators, and that child services professionals will
provide child victims with much needed support.
Second, this legislation tasks the new Crimes Against Children
Section with creating an Internet site that will consolidate sex
offender information which States currently release under the Federal
reporting act. The bill also directs States that have not developed
Internet sites to do so. The creation of a national Internet site will
enable concerned citizens to find in one, easily accessible place,
critical information about sexual predators.
Currently, all 50 States have statutes that require sex offenders to
register and share information with the United States Attorney General
through the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and over 30 States make
offender information available to the public on the Internet. A
national Internet site will enhance the public's ability to find and
access information that is already available in the public record, and
will protect citizens in states where sex offenders travel or move,
often to avoid detection. In short, the national Internet site will
provide parents and other concerned citizens with essential information
about the whereabouts and backgrounds of child abusers, so they can
take all necessary steps to protect our Nation's children.
Third, the bill enhances the ability of federal prosecutors to bring
and successfully prosecute cases involving children predators in
several ways:
The legislation extends the statute of limitations period that
applies to offenses involving the sexual or physical abuse of children
by permitting such cases to be brought up until the date the minor
reaches age 35, as opposed to age 25 as the law currently provides. I
believe that there should rarely, if ever, be a time when we say to a
victim who has suffered as a child at the hands of an abuser: you have
identified your abuser; you have proven the crime; yet the abuser will
remain free because you, the victim, waited too long to come forward.
Our criminal justice system should be ready to adjudicate all
meritorious claims of child abuse. Abusers should not benefit from the
lasting psychological harms they inflict on innocent children. This
provision is meant to recognize that the arm of the law should be long
in the prosecution of crimes of this heinous nature.
The bill also amends an existing Federal evidentiary rule, Federal
Rule of Evidence 414, to permit the admission into evidence of prior
offenses involving child molestation or the possession of sexually
explicit materials containing minors. The current evidentiary rule
permits such evidence to be admitted only where the victim is under 14
years of age. This amendment extends the rule to apply to any victim
who is under 18 years of age at the time of the offense. This amendment
also makes clear that even where an individual possesses what may be
virtual, as opposed to actual, child pornography, such evidence is
admissible under Rule 414.
This legislation limits the scope of the common law marital
privileges by making them inapplicable in a criminal case in which a
spouse stands accused of abusing a child in the home. Where a spouse is
charged with abusing a child of either spouse, or a child under the
custody or control of either spouse, neither the abuser nor his or her
spouse should be permitted to invoke a marital privilege to avoid
providing critical evidence in a criminal proceeding.
Fourth, the bill enhances tools that are used to investigate child
crimes. It expands the class of offenses that are included in the
Combined DNA Index System, CODIS, by adding to the system all federal
felony offenses and
[[Page S8459]]
other designated federal and state sexual offenses that subject Federal
offenders to sex registration requirements. This extension will
increase law enforcement's ability to solve crimes where DNA evidence
is found.
The bill also extends the Federal wiretap statute by adding
additional sex exploitation offenses, as well as sex trafficking and
other interstate sex offenses, to the statute's list of predicate
offenses. As we all know, the Internet is becoming an increasingly
popular means by which sexual predators make contact with child
victims. Predators frequently initiate relationships with children
online, but later seek to make personal contact with the child, either
over the telephone or through face to face meetings. But as the law
exists today, law enforcement authorities are restricted in their
ability to investigate such predators. This amendment will not only aid
investigators in obtaining evidence of such crimes, it will also help
stop these crimes before a sexual predator makes contact with a child.
To obtain a wiretap, law enforcement authorities will still need to
meet the strict statutory guidelines of the wiretap statute and obtain
authorization from a court. Thus, the legislation will not undermine
the legitimate expectations of privacy of law-abiding Americans.
Fifth, this legislation will strengthen criminal penalties by
extending the supervised release period that applies to child and sex
offenders, increasing the maximum penalties that apply to offenses
involving transportation for illegal sexual activity, and directing the
United States Sentencing Commission to consider enhancing the
sentencing guidelines that apply to criminal offenses with which child
predators are frequently charged.
In particular, the bill grants Federal judges the discretion to
impose up to lifetime periods of supervised release for individuals who
are convicted of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, transportation for
illegal sexual activity, and sex trafficking offenses. Under current
law, a judge can impose no more than 5 years of supervised release for
a serious felony, and no more than 3 years for a lesser categorized
offense. This amendment does not require the judge to impose a period
of supervised release longer than 5 years; it simply authorizes a judge
to do so where the nature and circumstances of the case justify a
longer supervised release period.
In my view, if there is any class of offenders on which our criminal
justice system should keep a close eye, it is sexual predators. It is
well documented that sex offenders are more likely than other violent
criminals to commit future crimes. And if there is any class of victims
we should seek to protect from repeat offenders, it is those who have
been sexually assaulted. They suffer tremendous physical, emotional and
psychological injuries. By ensuring that egregious sexual offenders are
supervised for longer periods of time, we will increase the chance that
they will be deterred from and punished for future criminal acts.
In addition to increasing the maximum penalties that apply to certain
offenses that involve the trafficking of children or other interstate
elements, the bill directs the United States Sentencing commission to
review the sentencing guidelines that apply to various federal offenses
that are used to prosecute kidnappers, sexual abusers and exploiters to
ensure that the sentences for these crimes are sufficiently severe
where aggravating circumstances exist, such as where the victim was
abducted, injured, killed, or abused by more than one person.
The ``Comprehensive Child Protection Act of 2002'' will enhance our
ability to combat crimes against children, but it is by no means an
end. Congress needs to continue to explore additional ways in which we
can improve our ability on a national level to protect our children.
Our children fall victim to many of the same crimes we face as adults,
and they are also subject crimes that are specific to childhood, like
child abuse and neglect. The effects of such heinous crimes are
devastating and often lead to an intergenerational cycle of violence
and abuse.
I want to do all I can to ensure that we devote the same intensity of
purpose to crimes committed against children, as we do to other serious
criminal offenses, such as those involving terrorism. We have no
greater resource than our children. I invite the Department of Justice,
the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other entities and
professionals who are charged with protecting our children to work with
me to improve our federal laws and to assist States in doing the same.
I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill and a section-by-
section summary analysis of S. 2917 be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
S. 2917
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 ``Comprehensive Child
Protection Act of 2002''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN RESPONSE CENTER.
(a) In General.--Chapter 33 of title 28, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 540A. National Crimes Against Children Response Center
``(a) Establishment.--There is established within the
Federal Bureau of Investigation a National Crimes Against
Children Response Center (referred to in this section as the
`Center').
``(b) Mission.--The mission of the Center is to develop a
national response plan model that--
``(1) provides a comprehensive, rapid response plan to
report crimes involving the victimization of children; and
``(2) protects children from future crimes.
``(c) Duties.--To carry out the mission described in
subsection (b), the Director of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation shall--
``(1) consult with the Deputy Assistant Attorney General
for the Crimes Against Children Office and other child crime
coordinators within the Department of Justice;
``(2) consolidate units within the Federal Bureau of
Investigation that investigate crimes against children,
including abductions, abuse, and sexual exploitation
offenses;
``(3) develop a comprehensive, rapid response plan for
crimes involving children that incorporates resources and
expertise from Federal, State, and local law enforcement
agencies and child services professionals;
``(4) develop a national strategy to prevent crimes against
children that shall include a plan to rescue children who are
identified in child pornography images as victims of abuse;
``(5) create regional rapid response teams composed of
Federal, State, and local prosecutors, investigators, victim
witness specialists, mental health professionals, and other
child services professionals;
``(6) implement an advanced training program that will
enhance the ability of Federal, State, and local entities to
respond to reported crimes against children and protect
children from future crimes; and
``(7) conduct outreach efforts to raise awareness and
educate communities about crimes against children.
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated for the Federal Bureau of Investigation
such sums as necessary for fiscal year 2003 to carry out this
section.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 33 of title 28, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``540A. National Crimes Against Children Response Center.''.
SEC. 3. INTERNET AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION CONCERNING
REGISTERED SEX OFFENDERS.
(a) In General.--Section 170101(e)(2) of the Violent Crime
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C.
14071(e)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``The release of information under this paragraph shall
include the maintenance of an Internet site containing such
information that is available to the public.''.
(b) Compliance Date.--Each State shall implement the
amendment made by this section within 3 years after the date
of enactment of this Act, except that the Attorney General
may grant an additional 2 years to a State that is making a
good faith effort to implement the amendment made by this
section.
(c) National Internet Site.--The Crimes Against Children
Section of the Department of Justice shall create a national
Internet site that links all State Internet sites established
pursuant to this section.
SEC. 4. DNA EVIDENCE.
Section 3(d) of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of
2000 (42 U.S.C. 14135a(d)) is amended to read as follows:
``(d) Qualifying Federal Offense.--For purposes of this
section, the term `qualifying Federal offense' means--
``(1) any offense classified as a felony under Federal law;
``(2) any offense under chapter 109A of title 18, United
States Code;
``(3) any crime of violence as that term is defined in
section 16 of title 18, United States Code; or
``(4) any offense within the scope of section 4042(c)(4) of
title 18, United States Code.''.
[[Page S8460]]
SEC. 5. INCREASE OF STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CHILD ABUSE
OFFENSES.
Section 3283 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``25 years'' and inserting ``35 years''.
SEC. 6. ADMISSIBILITY OF SIMILAR CRIME EVIDENCE IN CHILD
MOLESTATION CASES.
Rule 414 of the Federal Rules of Evidence is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting ``or possession of
sexually explicit materials containing apparent minors''
after ``or offenses of child molestation''; and
(2) in subsection (d), by striking ``fourteen'' and
inserting ``18''.
SEC. 7. MARITAL COMMUNICATION AND ADVERSE SPOUSAL PRIVILEGE.
(a) In General.--Chapter 119 of title 28, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after section 1826 the
following:
``Sec. 1826A. Marital communications and adverse spousal
privilege
``The confidential marital communication privilege and the
adverse spousal privilege shall be inapplicable in any
Federal proceeding in which a spouse is charged with a crime
against--
``(1) a child of either spouse; or
``(2) a child under the custody or control of either
spouse.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 119 of title 28, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1826
the following:
``1826A. Marital communications and adverse spousal privilege.''.
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF INTERCEPTION OF COMMUNICATIONS IN
THE INVESTIGATION OF SEXUAL CRIMES AND OTHER
CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN.
Section 2516(1)(c) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) by inserting ``section 1591 (sex trafficking of
children or by force, fraud, or coercion)'' after ``section
1511 (obstruction of State or local law enforcement),''; and
(2) by inserting ``section 2251A (selling or buying of
children), section 2252A (relating to material constituting
or containing child pornography), section 2260 (production of
sexually explicit depictions of a minor for importation into
the United States), sections 2421, 2422, 2423, and 2425
(relating to transportation for illegal sexual activity and
related crimes),'' after ``sections 2251 and 2252 (sexual
exploitation of children),''.
SEC. 9. INCREASE OF MAXIMUM SUPERVISED RELEASE TERM FOR SEX
OFFENDERS.
Section 3583 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(k) Supervised Release Terms for Sex Offenders.--
Notwithstanding subsection (b), the authorized term of
supervised release for any offense under chapter 109A, 110,
117, section 1201 involving a minor victim, or section 1591
is any term of years or life.''.
SEC. 10. INCREASE OF MAXIMUM PENALTIES FOR SEX OFFENSES.
Title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in section 1591(b)(2), by striking ``20 years'' and
inserting ``40 years'';
(2) in section 2421, by striking ``10 years'' and inserting
``20 years'';
(3) in section 2422--
(A) in subsection (a), by striking ``10 years'' and
inserting ``20 years''; and
(B) in subsection (b), by striking ``15 years'' and
inserting ``30 years'';
(4) in section 2423--
(A) in subsection (a), by striking ``15 years'' and
inserting ``30 years''; and
(B) in subsection (b), by striking ``15 years'' and
inserting ``30 years''; and
(5) in section 2425, by striking ``5 years'' and inserting
``10 years''.
SEC. 11. DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR CRIMES AGAINST
CHILDREN.
(a) Establishment of Position.--
(1) In general.--Chapter 31 of title 28, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after section 507 the
following:
``Sec. 507A. Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Crimes
Against Children
``(a) The Attorney General shall appoint a Deputy Assistant
Attorney General for Crimes Against Children.
``(b) The Deputy Assistant Attorney General shall be the
head of the Crimes Against Children Section (CACS) of the
Department of Justice.
``(c) The duties of the Deputy Assistant Attorney General
shall include the following:
``(1) To prosecute cases involving crimes against children.
``(2) To advise Federal prosecutors and law enforcement
personnel regarding crimes against children.
``(3) To provide guidance and assistance to Federal, State,
and local law enforcement agencies and personnel, and
appropriate foreign entities, regarding responses to crimes
against children.
``(4) To propose and comment upon legislation concerning
crimes against children.
``(5) Such other duties as the Attorney General may
require, including duties carried out by the head of the
Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and the Terrorism
and Violent Crime Section of the Department of Justice.''.
(2) Technical and conforming amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 31 of title 28, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 507
the following:
``507A. Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Crimes Against
Children.''.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations for CACS.--There is
authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Justice
for fiscal year 2003, such sums as necessary to carry out
this section.
SEC. 12. DIRECTIVE TO SENTENCING COMMISSION.
(a) In General.--Pursuant to its authority under section
994(p) of title 18, United States Code, and in accordance
with this section, the United States Sentencing Commission
shall review the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and policy
statements relating to child abuse and exploitation offenses,
including United States Sentencing Guideline sections 2A3.1,
2A3.2, 2A3.3, 2A3.4, 2A4.1, 2G1.1, 2G2.1, 2G2.2, 2G2.3,
2G2.4, and 2G3.1 to determine whether those sections are
sufficiently severe.
(b) Considerations.--In reviewing the Federal Sentencing
Guidelines in accordance with subsection (a), the United
States Sentencing Commission shall consider whether the
guidelines are adequate where--
(1) the victim had not attained the age of 12 years, or had
not attained the age of 16 years;
(2) the victim died, or sustained permanent, life-
threatening or serious injury as a result of the criminal
act;
(3) the victim was abducted;
(4) the victim was abused by more than 1 participant;
(5) the offense involved more than 1 victim;
(6) the ability of the victim to appraise or control his or
her conduct was substantially impaired;
(7) the offense involved a large number of visual
depictions, including multiple images of the same victim; and
(8) the offense involved material that portrays sadistic or
masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence.
____
``Comprehensive Child Protection Act of 2002''
Section 1. Title--The Comprehensive Child Protection Act of
2002.
Section 2. Creates a National Crimes Against Children
Response Center--The bill directs the Federal Bureau of
Investigation to establish a National Crimes Against Children
Response Center whose primary mission will be to develop a
comprehensive and rapid response plan to reported crimes
involving the victimization of children. While the National
Response Center is to be established by the FBI, in
consultation with the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for
the Crimes Against Children Office, it will integrate the
resources and expertise of other Federal, State and local law
enforcement agencies, as well as other child services
professionals. By creating and training rapid response teams
comprised of Federal, State and local prosecutors,
investigators, victim witness specialists, mental health and
other child services professionals, the Center will greatly
enhance our national efforts to protect our children from
child predators.
Section 3. Creates a National Internet Site for Sexual
Offender Information--The legislation directs the new
Department of Justice Crimes Against Children Office to
create an Internet site that consolidates sex offender
information which States currently release under the federal
reporting act. The bill also directs States that have not
developed Internet sites to do so.
Currently, all 50 states have registration statutes that
require sex offenders to register and to share information
with the United States Attorney General through the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, and over 30 States make offender
information available to the public on the Internet. The
creation of a national Internet site will enable concerned
citizens to find in one, easily accessible place, critical
information about sexual predators.
Section 4. Expands the DNA Analysis and Backlog Elimination
Act, 42 U.S.C. 14135a(d), by increasing the categories of
offenses that are included in the system of convicted
offender DNA profiles, the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
The bill expands the class of offenses that are included in
CODIS by adding to the system all Federal felonies and
additional offenses that subject Federal offenders to sex
registration requirements.
Currently, the DNA Analysis and Backlog Elimination Act
includes only select Federal offenses in CODIS. The
successful experience of a large number of States which
authorize the collection of DNA samples from all felony
offenders illustrated the merit of this extension. In these
States, numerous crimes have been solved based on DNA
evidence obtained from nonviolent felony offenders. The
addition of other offenses that subject Federal offenders to
sex registration requirements will further enhance
enforcement's ability to solve crimes.
Section 5. Extends the Statute of Limitations Period for
Child Abuse Offenses contained in 18 U.S.C. 3283 to allow
prosecutions of offenses involving the sexual or physical
abuse of a child to be brought until the child reaches the
age of 35. Currently, such prosecutions may be brought until
the child is 25 years of age.
This amendment is intended to recognize that the arm of the
law should be long in the prosecution of child abuse
offenses. Too often victims of such crimes do not come
forward until years after the abuse because they fear their
disclosures will lead to further humiliation, shame, and even
ostracism. This amendment will reduce the number of
meritorious child abuse cases that are barred from
prosecution on statute of limitations grounds.
[[Page S8461]]
Section 6. Expands Rule 414 of the Federal Rules of
Evidence which allows evidence of a defendant's prior acts of
child molestation to be admitted in a criminal child
molestation case.
The amendment extends the definition of ``child'' contained
in Rule 414 to include any person below the age of 18--rather
than age 14, as the Rule now reads. The amendment also makes
clear that where a defendant previously possessed what may
have been virtual, as opposed to actual, child pornography,
such evidence is admissible under Rule 414. Like the
possession of actual child pornography, the possession of
virtual child pornography is highly probative evidence that
should be admissible in a case of child molestation or
exploitation.
Section 7. Precludes the Assertion of a Marital Privilege
in a Criminal Child Abuse Case in which a spouse stands
accused of abusing a child in the home. In such a case,
neither the abuser nor his or her spouse should be permitted
to invoke a marital privilege to preclude critical testimony
relating to the child abuse.
Section 8. Expands the Federal Wiretap Act, 18 U.S.C.
2516(1)(c), by adding as predicate offenses to the statute,
sex trafficking, sex exploitation, and other interstate sex
offenses. Currently, the wiretap statute authorizes the
interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications in
the investigation of just two sexual exploitation of children
crimes. This expanded tool will be particularly useful to
investigators who track sexual predators and child
portnographers.
To obtain a wiretap, law enforcement authorities will still
need to meet the strict statutory guidelines of the wiretap
statute and obtain authorization from a court. Thus, the
legislation will not undermine the legitimate expectations of
privacy of law-abiding Americans.
Section 9. Extends the Maximum Supervised Release Period
that Applies to Sexual Offenders by granting Federal judges
the discretion to impose up to lifetime periods of supervised
release for individuals who are convicted of sexual abuse,
sexual exploitation, transportation for illegal sexual
activity, or sex trafficking offenses.
Currently, under the general supervised release statute, 18
U.S.C. 3583, a judge can impose no more than 5 years of
supervised release for a serious felony, and no more than 3
years for a lesser categorized offense. This amendment will
not require judges to impose a period of supervised release
longer than 5 years; it simply authorizes them to do so where
the judge sees fit based on the nature and circumstances of
the particular case.
Section 10. Increases the Maximum Penalties that Apply to
Certain Sexual Related Offenses by doubling the maximum
penalties for sexual related offenses involving the
trafficking of children and other interstate elements.
Stiffer penalties are needed to punish and deter individuals
who commit such offenses.
Section 11. Creates a Crimes Against Children Section at
the Department of Justice--The bill also directs the Attorney
General to appoint a Deputy Assistant Attorney General to
oversee a new section at the Department of Justice designated
to focus solely on crimes against children. Among other
things, the new section will be tasked with prosecuting
crimes against children, providing guidance and assistance to
Federal State, and local law enforcement agencies and
personnel who handle such cases, coordinating efforts with
international law enforcement agencies to combat crimes
against children, and acting as a liaison with the
legislative and judicial branches of government to ensure
that adequate attention and resources are focused on
protecting our children from predators of all types.
Section 12. Directs the Sentencing Commission to review the
guidelines that apply to child abuse and exploitation
offenses to determine whether they are sufficiently severe.
In so doing, the Sentencing Commission shall consider whether
the guidelines are adequate where aggravated circumstances
exist: the victim had not attained the age of twelve years,
or had not attained the age of sixteen years; the victim
died, sustained permanent, life-threatening, or serious
injury as a result of the criminal act; the victim was
abducted; the victim was abused by more than one individual;
the offense involved more than one victim; the offense
involved a large number of visual depictions, including
multiple images of the same victim; or the offense involved
material that portrays sadistic or masochistic conduct or
other depictions of violence.
Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleague from Utah,
Senator Hatch, to introduce the ``Comprehensive Child Protection Act of
2002''--a bill to help protect our nation's children from child
molestation and other forms of abuse.
Sexual abuse of children is a pervasive and extremely troubling
problem in the United States. I learned that over 25 years ago when I
was serving as the Country Prosecutor in Greene County, Ohio. I saw
what this kind of abuse does to innocent, helpless children and how
pervasive the crimes are in our communities. In fact, according to the
Congressional Research Service, one of every three girls and one of
every seven boys will be sexually abused before they reach the age of
18.
Our local police and prosecutors are on the front line in the fight
against these criminals, and they deserve credit and our thanks for
their hard work. For example, in Greene County recently, a number of
child pornographers were identified and prosecuted when local law
enforcement carried out a successful Internet sting operation.
Despite successes like this, however, the data suggest that law
enforcement is fighting an uphill battle. Last year, there were over
5,400 registered sex offenders living in my home state of Ohio--an
increase of 319 percent over 1998.
Equally troubling, many child molesters prey upon dozens of victims
before they are reported to law enforcement. Some evade detection for
so long because many children never report the abuse. According to the
Bureau of Justice Statistics, between 60 percent and 80 percent of
child molestations and 69 percent of sexual assaults are never reported
to the police. Of reported sexual assaults, 71 percent of the victims
are children, according to the Congressional Research Service.
For these reasons, it is vitally important that Congress do
everything in its power to support law enforcement in its efforts to
protect our nation's most vulnerable citizens. Enacting the
``Comprehensive Child Protection Act of 2002'' would be a step in the
right direction. By enacting this measure, we would help protect our
children from sexual predators, pornographers, and others who abuse
children. Among its major provisions, this legislation would:
1. Direct the FBI to establish a new center that creates
and trains ``rapid response teams'' (composed of prosecutors,
investigators, and others) to respond promptly to reported
crimes against children;
2. Establish a national Internet site that would make sex
offender information available to the public in one, easy to
access place. Currently, about 30 states make offender
information available to the public online;
3. Authorize the collection of DNA samples from registered
sex offenders and the inclusion of these DNA samples in the
Combined DNA Index System, or ``CODIS;''
4. Permit the prosecution of child abuse offenses until a
victim reaches the age of 35 (as opposed to the age of 25
under current law). This provision recognizes that victims of
such crimes often do not come forward until years after the
abuse, out of shame or a fear of further humiliation;
5. Make it easier for investigators to track sexual
predators and child pornographers and make it easier to
prosecute criminal child abuse/molestation cases;
6. Create a new section at the Department of Justice to
focus solely on crimes against children; and
7. Stiffen penalties for sex-related offenses involving
children.
This is a good bill--a bill that would help ensure that our children
are protected from some of the most heinous of criminals. It is a bill
that would increase the punishment for those criminals. And, it is a
bill that, quite simply, is the right thing to do. I encourage my
colleagues to join us in cosponsoring this important measure.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I rise today in support of an act that I
am cosponsoring with Senator Hatch that represents one of the most
comprehensive pieces of legislation ever drafted to protect children,
the Comprehensive Child Protection Act of 2002. As Ranking Republican
on the Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, I have been greatly concerned
with the recent increase in reports of child abductions and murders, so
I am glad to be a part of this effort to address this growing problem.
In my tenure on the Judiciary Committee, I have long fought for our
Nation's children, and have ardently supported laws that bring them and
their families greater protection. I am also pleased that the President
will be hosting a conference on missing and exploited children at the
end of this month, and I look forward to that conference and appreciate
the President's and First Lady's work on behalf of children.
This legislation comes at a critical time because we are hearing more
and more about children being taken from their homes or schools and
abused, or worse, murdered. Our children are a gift to us, are our
national treasure, and are our future. We must do all that we can to
protect these innocents and give law enforcement every tool possible to
ferret out the criminals who would do our children harm. With this
legislation, we will be ensuring a greater measure of protection for
our children.
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The bill does many important things. First, it helps law enforcement
respond immediately to incidents of child abduction, because, as we've
seen with the Amber Alert system, time is critical in any abduction
case to thwart further injury or harm. The bill creates a National
Crimes Against Children Response Center at the FBI that will integrate
the resources and expertise of all Federal, State and local law
enforcement sources to provide a rapid response for crimes involving
child victims. The bill also helps law enforcement by making it
possible to get wire taps for suspected sex trafficking and
exploitation offenses, and will require that all Federal child sex
crimes offenders have their DNA added to the national DNA registry. So
the bill will help to centralize information about criminals and
crimes, and makes the job of the criminal investigator easier and more
accurate through wiretaps and DNA evidence.
The bill also creates a website registry for convicted child sexual
offenders so that parents, neighbors, and police know who in their
communities is a convicted child predator. This website will supplement
registries in all 50 States. This important tool will help families
make better and fully-informed decisions about their childrens' safety,
and will greatly aid law enforcements' response to reports of child
abductions and other offenses against children.
The bill also gives new tools to prosecutors and the courts. It
extends the statute of limitations for prosecuting child offenders,
allows prosecutors to introduce evidence of past child sex crimes in
sentencing hearings, removes the so-called ``spousal privilege'' so
that a spouse can't stand silent in the prosecution of the other spouse
for child sexual abuse, and increases the maximum sentences and
probation periods for child sex offenders. These important tools will
make our communities safer by helping to rid them of child predators,
and by keeping a tight leash on predators when they get released from
prison.
So this bill helps the public know about sexual predators in their
communities, improves the nation's ability to respond to child
abduction reports, and aids criminal investigators and prosecutors in
their efforts to protect the public by identifying and locking-up child
predators. I ask my fellow Senators to support this important bill.
______