[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 134 (Monday, September 12, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H6046-H6047]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INVESTIGATIVE ASSISTANCE FOR VIOLENT CRIMES ACT OF 2011
Mr. GOWDY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 2076) to amend title 28, United States Code, to clarify the
statutory authority for the longstanding practice of the Department of
Justice of providing investigatory assistance on request of State and
local authorities with respect to certain serious violent crimes, and
for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2076
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 ``Investigative Assistance for
Violent Crimes Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. INVESTIGATION OF MASS KILLING OR ATTEMPTED MASS
KILLING AND OTHER VIOLENT CRIMES.
Title 28, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in section 530C(b)(1)(L)(i), by striking ``2,000,000''
and inserting ``$3,000,000'';
(2) in section 530C(b)(4), by adding at the end the
following: ``The authority to conduct or assist in
investigations includes the authority to deploy tactical
response, command and control, and other crisis-management
assets of the Bureau, as appropriate; and any such conduct or
assistance shall be understood presumptively to be within the
scope of Federal office or employment.'';
(3) in section 540A--
(A) in the section heading, by striking ``Investigation of
certain violent crimes;'' and inserting ``Investigation of
certain violent crimes'';
(B) in subsection (a), by inserting ``, in the
investigation of violent acts and shootings occurring in
venues such as schools, colleges, universities, non-Federal
office buildings, malls, and other public places, and in the
investigation of mass killings and attempted mass killings''
after ``traveler''; and
(C) in subsection (c), by adding the following new
paragraph at the end:
``(4) `mass killings' means three or more killings in a
single incident.''; and
(4) in the table of sections at the beginning of chapter
33, by striking the item relating to section 540A and
inserting the following:
``540A. Investigation of certain violent crimes.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Gowdy) and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr.
Conyers) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from South Carolina.
General Leave
Mr. GOWDY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous materials on H.R. 2076, as amended, currently
under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from South Carolina?
There was no objection.
Mr. GOWDY. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, violent crimes that impact multiple victims in mass
shootings in particular are unpredictable and, in addition to sending
shock waves through the communities impacted, often test the resources
of the State and local law enforcement jurisdictions involved.
Regrettably, within our lifetime, there have been scores of mass
shootings ranging from restaurants to high schools to universities and
churches. No place is safe.
There are no sanctuaries left any more, Mr. Speaker, in our culture.
And despite the tremendous training, education, and hard work of the
brave women and men in State and local law enforcement, these types of
tragedies can test even the most well-resourced law enforcement
agencies. Not only is there an active crime scene with victims, there
are hundreds of pieces of forensic or ballistic evidence, and the
gathering of evidence is taking place sometimes contemporaneous with
the search for an assailant.
There is a deep and rich history of cooperation and collaboration
between and among law enforcement agencies. This is true at the local
level, the State level and, indeed, at the Federal level. Federal law
enforcement agencies have unique skill sets, access to resources and
equipment and other investigative techniques that can and do assist
smaller police departments on a regular basis.
But, Mr. Speaker, currently the FBI does not have the specific
statutory authority to assist in all investigations, specifically with
respect to the investigation of mass shootings or other violent crimes
occurring in non-Federal venues.
H.R. 2076, the Investigative Assistance for Violent Crimes Act of
2011, is a commonsense bill that allows the FBI to provide assistance
to State and local law enforcement authorities, if requested, in
response to a mass shooting or other mass casualty. This bill addresses
when the FBI is asked to assist State or local authorities with mass
shootings and mass killings at a public place, such as a shopping mall
or a school.
The FBI has traditionally assisted State and local law enforcement
authorities, but the statutory authority explicitly granting the FBI
jurisdiction is lacking. To be sure, the FBI helps and is willing to
help, but the absence of a specific statutory grant of jurisdiction,
even jurisdiction by invitation, needs to be resolved.
This bill is not an expansion of Federal authority, and it does not
expand the authority of the FBI. Any assistance from the FBI must be
requested by the State or local authority and agreed to by Federal
authorities. The FBI will only assist when State or local counterparts
ask for help and they agree to provide it.
This legislation, Mr. Speaker, is simple, but it is also critical.
State and local authorities often look to the FBI for assistance in
handling large, violent crimes, but the FBI must look to Federal law to
determine what authority it has been granted by Congress before it can
offer assistance.
Accordingly, H.R. 2076 gives the FBI the specific authority to
respond to requests for assistance from State and local law enforcement
authorities when mass killings or other acts of violence are committed
or attempted.
H.R. 2076, Mr. Speaker, was passed out of the House Judiciary
Committee by a voice vote with broad bipartisan support. This bill is
also supported by the FBI Agents Association, a voluntary professional
association currently representing over 12,000 active duty and retired
FBI special agents.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I begin by commending my colleague on Judiciary, Trey Gowdy, for
introducing this bill and being the sponsor
[[Page H6047]]
of it. I agree with everything that has been said.
I would like to ask my colleague about a shooting I read about just
today--it wasn't a mass killing, but some of these things are so
awful--a 17-year-old young girl athlete shot mysteriously. Do you see
that that might be a role that we may want the FBI to be able to
intervene in if they are invited as well?
Mr. GOWDY. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. CONYERS. I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina.
Mr. GOWDY. I thank the gentleman from Michigan, and I would tell the
distinguished former chairman of Judiciary, I am not aware of a single
instance in my 16 years as a prosecutor where the FBI was asked to
provide help and didn't do so, and I know that my friend from Michigan
would want the FBI to be on solid, legal footing.
So with respect to the shooting that you are referencing--and I fear
that I am familiar with that shooting; I believe I read about it, the
tragic loss of life of a wonderful high school young lady who happened
to be a tremendous basketball player--the FBI agents that I know would
gladly help in that case.
And if the gentleman from Michigan wanted to provide a way for the
Bureau to help whenever requested, I would be happy to work on that
with him.
Mr. CONYERS. I thank the gentleman, and I think this is something
that our community might well want to look into, because the general
impression is that crime is going down, and I assume that's accurate,
but in some places it isn't. I thank the gentleman for making sure that
this assistance from the FBI has a statutory basis, which it hasn't
enjoyed until now.
I join with him in providing this assistance as a matter of law, and
I urge the passage of the measure.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support H.R. 2076. This bill will
improve the ability of the FBI to assist state and local law
enforcement in response to certain types of incidents.
H.R. 2076 would give the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI,
specific statutory authority to respond to requests from state and
local law enforcement authorities for assistance in the investigation
of felony crimes of violence that are violent acts, shootings, mass
killings, and attempted mass killings.
The FBI does not currently have specific statutory authority to
assist in the investigation of mass killings or attempted mass killings
occurring in venues such as schools, colleges, universities, non-
federal office buildings, malls, and/or other public places.
While the FBI continues to receive requests for such assistance from
state and local law enforcement, there is no federal statute that
directly provides jurisdiction to the FBI to respond to such requests.
Legislation granting the proposed investigative authority would allow
the FBI to provide state and local law enforcement with the assistance
requested when the violent act does not appear to otherwise violate a
federal law.
State and local law enforcement agencies responsible for
investigating mass killings in the workplace or classroom often need
the many resources which the FBI is well capable of providing. Further,
the general public expects the FBI to be capable of responding when
mass killings threaten the safety of our nation's citizens.
There is a need for legislation that grants the FBI authority to
respond immediately to requests for assistance from state and local law
enforcement authorities when mass killings are committed or attempted.
I commend the gentleman from South Carolina, Representative Trey
Gowdy, for introducing H.R. 2076. I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GOWDY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
{time} 1610
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Gowdy) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2076, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
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