[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 122 (Tuesday, September 27, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1954-E1955]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               THE JUSTICE FOR PEACE OFFICERS ACT OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DAVID DREIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 27, 2005

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, on April 29, 2002, Los Angeles County 
Sheriff's Deputy David March was brutally slain execution-style during 
a routine traffic stop. Suspect Armando Garcia fled to Mexico within 
hours of Deputy March's death and has eluded prosecution by U.S. 
authorities.
  Tragically, Mexico's refusal to extradite individuals who may face 
the death penalty or life imprisonment has complicated efforts to bring 
Armando Garcia back to the U.S. to face prosecution for his crimes. 
Over the last 3 years, I have fought to see Armando Garcia and other 
fugitives accused in killings brought back to the U.S. I have met with 
officials from the Department of Justice and the State Department. I 
have written repeatedly, joined by other members of Congress, to 
President Bush and to Secretaries of State Colin Powell and Condoleezza 
Rice, calling for aggressive action to change Mexico's extradition 
policy. I have even met with high officials of the Mexican government 
in an effort to impress upon our neighbor the intolerable nature of its 
extradition policy. However, 3 years later, Armando Garcia and 
thousands of other fugitives still roam free.
  I will continue to work with the administration to bring Deputy 
March's murderer to justice. I will also continue our fight to persuade 
Mexico to change its policy. But until that is achieved, I believe that 
the Congress has a duty to act as well.
  It was at the urging of Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca that my 
friend from Pasadena, Mr. Schiff, and I introduced H.R. 2363, the Peace 
Officer Justice Act, to make it a Federal crime to kill a peace officer 
and flee the country to avoid prosecution. This bill ensures that 
criminals who murder law enforcement officials and escape to another 
country will have the full weight of the Federal Government on their 
trail.
  Currently under Federal law, it is a crime to kill a Federal peace 
officer or state/local officers if they are engaged in a Federal 
investigation. We believe there is no reason that a heinous crime, such 
as the one in Deputy March's case, should not also be a Federal crime 
with the same penalties as the murder of a Federal officer.
  The punishment for fleeing prosecution under existing law is no more 
than 5 years or merely a fine. I believe that a fine or 5 years 
imprisonment for the cold-blooded murder of a law enforcement officer 
is tantamount to no justice at all. The Peace Officer Justice Act makes 
such an act punishable by the Federal murder statute, which includes 
the death penalty or life in prison. This legislation is supported by 
the Fraternal Order of Police and the National Sheriffs Association.
  However, Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley has 
decided to strongly oppose the bill citing several concerns with its 
provisions. Specifically, Mr. Cooley believes that making such a crime 
a violation of Federal law would provide ``exclusive jurisdiction'' for 
the Federal Government to pursue a cop-killer who flees the country. In 
response, I made clear that this bill provides concurrent jurisdiction 
for the Federal Government to prosecute; not the authority to supersede 
jurisdiction of states or localities. Therefore, either the Federal 
Government or the State/local prosecutor could pursue the case. In 
fact, if the State has already pursued its own prosecution of such a 
crime, that would not prohibit the Federal Government from pursuing a 
subsequent prosecution under this bill. For example, in United States 
v. Lanza, 260 U.S. 377, 382 (1922), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the 
conviction in Federal court of a person previously convicted in State 
court for performing the same act. The Court stated ``We have here two 
sovereigns deriving power from different sources, capable of dealing 
with the same subject-matter within the same territory. Each government 
in determining what shall be an offense against its peace and dignity 
is exercising its own sovereignty, not that of the other.'' This ``dual 
sovereignty doctrine'' has also been used to uphold successive 
prosecutions by two States for the same conduct. See e.g. Heath v. 
Alabama, 474 U.S. 82 (1985) (permitting a defendant who crossed a State 
line in the course of a kidnap/murder to be prosecuted for murder in 
both States). However, Mr. Cooley strongly disagrees with U.S. Supreme 
Court precedent.
  Mr. Cooley also cites California Penal Code 793, which prohibits the 
prosecution of any crime that has already been tried in the U.S. or 
other State. He argues that California would not be able to prosecute 
cop-killers who flee the country due to the State law and the Federal 
Government's ``exclusive jurisdiction'' of such cases.
  Mr. Cooley also argues that if Federal prosecutors, using their 
``exclusive jurisdiction'' of such crimes, decide to forego the death 
penalty or life imprisonment to extradite a suspect back from Mexico to 
the U.S., that any term of years set by the Federal Government would be 
less than any term that California prosecutors would seek for 
punishment. Specifically,

[[Page E1955]]

he cites that under California law, second degree murder of a law 
enforcement officer, without special circumstances, is punishable by 
minimum of 25 years to life with the possibility of parole, while 
second degree murder under the Federal murder statute is ``any term of 
years or life.'' In addition, Mr. Cooley cites that local prosecutors 
are more experienced at prosecuting murder cases and are better at the 
job than Federal prosecutors.
  Finally, Mr. Cooley cites the ``Rule of Speciality'' in the U.S.-
Mexico Extradition Treaty, which states that individuals extradited 
from one country to another can only be prosecuted under the charges 
included in the extradition request. Therefore, he argues that since 
H.R. 2363 provides ``exclusive jurisdiction'' to the Federal Government 
in such cases, that California will be barred from prosecuting a cop-
killer who flees the country.
  Although I strongly disagree with Mr. Cooley's interpretation of 
``exclusive jurisdiction,'' I have reached out to him and local law 
enforcement officers for suggestions on how to improve the bill. Based 
on their feedback, I, along with Mr. Schiff, am introducing the Justice 
for Peace Officers Act to build on the provisions of H.R. 2363 by 
enhancing the punishment for cop-killers and those who aid them, 
providing priority to State/local prosecutors in such cases, making 
clear that the bill does not supersede State/local jurisdiction and 
urging the renegotiation of the U.S.Mexico Extradition Treaty to 
resolve the death penalty/life imprisonment roadblock.
  The Justice for Peace Officers Act, like the Peace Officer Justice 
Act, makes it a Federal crime to kill a peace officer and flee the 
country. And like H.R. 2363, the Justice for Peace Officers Act makes 
the crime for first degree murder punishable by the death penalty or 
life imprisonment. The Justice for Peace Officers Act goes a step 
further by making murder in the second degree punishable by a mandatory 
minimum of 30 years in prison or life imprisonment. Under the current 
``federal murder statute'' (18 U.S.C. 1111), the punishment for second 
degree murder is any term of years or life imprisonment. This change 
ensures that persons guilty of killing a peace officer under second 
degree murder and fleeing the country will face a significant minimum 
number of years under lock and key.
  The Justice for Peace Officers Act also raises the penalty for those 
who help cowardly cop-killers flee the country to avoid prosecution. 
Under the current ``accessory after the fact'' federal statute (18 
U.S.C. 3), the punishment for helping suspects, facing the death 
penalty or life imprisonment, to avoid capture is a maximum of 15 years 
in prison. The Justice for Peace Officers Act ensures that such aiders 
and abettors would serve a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years 
behind bars.
  Let me be clear that it will always be my preference for State and 
local prosecutors to go after cop killers--police keep our local 
communities safe and local prosecutors should have primary jurisdiction 
over these cases. That is why I included language in the Justice for 
Peace Officers Act to give priority to State/local prosecutors to 
pursue a suspect of killing a peace officer and fleeing the country. 
Specifically, the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, the 
Associate Attorney General, or an Assistant Attorney General, in 
consultation with the appropriate State/local prosecutors, must provide 
formal approval in writing to pursue such a case. This gives State/
local and Federal officials the opportunity to confer on the best 
course of action, and gives preference to State/local officials since 
no action can be taken on the Federal level without the additional step 
of obtaining formal written permission. This language is based on a 
provision in the current ``flight to avoid prosecution'' Federal 
statute (18 U.S.C. 1073). Also, the Justice for Peace Officers Act 
includes language making clear that nothing in the bill would supersede 
the authority of State/local prosecutors.
  In addition, the penalty under the Justice for Peace Officers Act 
would be a consecutive sentence to any other State or Federal 
punishment. Since State/local authorities have first priority to 
prosecute and sentence such a suspect, the provision would ensure that 
any punishment on the local/State level would be enhanced by an 
additional Federal sentence.
  Finally, we firmly believe that the Bush Administration should use 
all tools available to bring about a change in Mexico's policy 
regarding the extradition of nationals that will allow these brutal 
killers to face justice in the U.S. That is why we included a provision 
in the Justice for Peace Officers Act directing the Secretary of State 
to enter into formal discussions with the Mexican government on the 
U.S.-Mexico Extradition Treaty. The provision also directs the 
Secretary of State to urge the Mexican Government to use all available 
actions to persuade the Mexican Supreme Court to reconsider its October 
2001 ruling so that the possibility of life imprisonment will not have 
an effect on the timely extradition of criminal suspects from Mexico to 
the U.S.
  Mr. Speaker, I hope that the Justice for Peace Officers Act will 
signal to Mexico and any other country that refuses to extradite a 
fugitive cop-killer that the Congress of the United States considers 
this a crime against America and will bring the full resources of the 
Federal Government to bear to seek justice. I urge all of my colleagues 
to co-sponsor the Justice for Peace Officers Act.

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