[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 74 (Tuesday, June 1, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S6265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        KOBY MANDELL ACT OF 2003

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased to cosponsor the Koby Mandell 
Act of 2003. This bill is intended to ensure that all terrorists who 
commit violent acts against American citizens overseas are punished to 
the full extent of the law. I have already been working to ensure that 
the Koby Mandell Act is considered by the Senate and, I expect passed 
into law.
  Three years ago, Koby Mandell was beaten to death in a cave near the 
Jewish settlement of Tekoa on the West Bank in Israel. Koby Mandell was 
13 years old. No one was caught or charged with responsibility for this 
murder. This tragic story is only one among dozens in which U.S. 
citizens have been harmed by terrorists, and the U.S. Government has 
been hindered in its ability to hunt down and prosecute the criminals.
  The bill would establish within the Department of Justice an office 
to ensure that all American citizens who are killed or injured by 
terrorists operating overseas receive equal treatment by the U.S. 
Government in its efforts to solve the crime and bring the perpetrators 
to justice. There would be no difference among cases based on the 
origin of the terrorists or where they carry out their heinous acts. 
The investigators and prosecutors associated with this new DOJ office 
could investigate each incident aggressively, whether the victim is a 
diplomat, a volunteer teacher like Ted Burgon of Oregon, who was killed 
in Indonesia in 2002, or a child like Koby Mandell.
  Specifically, this bill will create the Office of Justice for Victims 
of Overseas Terrorism. The Office will ensure that rewards are offered 
for the capture of terrorists involved in attacks that harm American 
citizens. It will advertise such rewards and publicize the names and 
photos of suspects. The Office will establish a notification system to 
keep victims' families updated on the status of investigations and 
efforts to capture suspects in each case. It will seek to ensure that 
suspects are not able to obtain visas to travel to the U.S. In 
addition, the Office will seek to determine if terrorist suspects who 
are believed to have participated in attacks on American citizens are 
employed by local or national police forces. If it finds that suspects 
are so employed, the Office will seek to curtail any American foreign 
assistance to those forces. Finally, the Office will undertake a 
comprehensive assessment of indictments and prosecutions by the U.S. 
Government against suspected terrorists. It will seek to identify any 
patterns that would determine the reasons for the absence of 
indictments in certain cases or in certain countries. This assessment 
will be conveyed to the Attorney General with recommendations for 
correcting any shortcomings in attempts to pursue, capture, and 
prosecute suspects.
  Just as we must do all we can to prevent terrorist attacks from 
occurring on our soil, we must take additional steps to protect our 
citizens from attack overseas. Where they are targeted and harmed, it 
is the duty of the U.S. Government to pursue each case of murder or 
injury vigorously until every terrorist knows that he or she will not 
escape justice. The Koby Mandell Act is a step toward honoring those 
who have been lost or harmed, and a step toward deterring future 
attacks. I am honored to join Senator Smith, Senator Wyden, and the 
other sponsors of this measure as a cosponsor.

                          ____________________