[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 56 (Monday, April 7, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H2980-H2983]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DEBBIE SMITH REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2014
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4323) to reauthorize programs authorized under the Debbie
Smith Act of 2004, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 4323
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 ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization
Act of 2014''.
SEC. 2. GENERAL REAUTHORIZATION.
Section 2 of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of
2000 (42 U.S.C. 14135) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(3)--
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``2010 through 2018''
and inserting ``2014 through 2019''; and
(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``2018'' and inserting
``2019''; and
(2) in subsection (j), by striking ``2009 through 2014''
and inserting ``2015 through 2019''.
SEC. 3. TRAINING AND EDUCATION.
Section 303(b) of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of
2004 (42 U.S.C. 14136(b)) is amended by striking ``2009
through 2014'' and inserting ``2015 through 2019''.
SEC. 4. SEXUAL ASSAULT FORENSIC EXAM GRANTS.
Section 304(c) of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of
2004 (42 U.S.C. 14136a(c)) is amended by striking ``2009
through 2014'' and inserting ``2015 through 2019''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte).
General Leave
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous materials on H.R. 4323, currently under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Virginia?
There was no objection.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
In 1989, Debbie Smith was kidnapped from her Williamsburg, Virginia,
home while her husband, a police officer, was sleeping upstairs. Her
assailant dragged her into the woods behind her home and raped her.
Despite being threatened with further harm, she bravely came forward,
reported the assault, and consented to a forensic exam with hopes that
her attacker would be quickly identified and apprehended.
Unfortunately, this did not happen.
In the years following the sexual assault, Debbie Smith, stricken
with thoughts of suicide, struggled with the paralyzing fear that her
unknown attacker would return to inflict harm on her and her family.
The traumatic effect remained with Debbie and her family for over 6
years until an offender was identified and convicted using DNA
analysis.
I am pleased to sponsor H.R. 4323, the Debbie Smith Reauthorization
Act of 2014, to ensure victims of rape, sexual assault, and other
violent crimes do not have to endure similar experiences to Debbie
Smith in the future. I would like to acknowledge the bipartisan support
received from the numerous cosponsors of this important legislation,
including lead cosponsor Congresswoman Bass of California and original
cosponsors Ranking Member Conyers, Crime Subcommittee Chairman
Sensenbrenner, and Ranking Member Scott. I also would like to recognize
the efforts of my colleague from New York, Carolyn Maloney, in
cosponsoring this bill reauthorizing the program she helped create in
2004. Finally, the gentleman from Texas, Judge Ted Poe, has also been a
strong leader in this area for many years, and we are all very
appreciative of his efforts.
With the goal of eliminating the backlog of untested DNA samples, the
Debbie Smith program awards grants to State and local governments to
fund the collection of samples from offenders and crime scenes,
including rape kits, increased laboratory capacity, and the analysis of
DNA samples in a timely and appropriate manner.
{time} 1730
Additionally, grants are authorized to provide training, technical
assistance, and education to law enforcement officials, court officers,
corrections personnel, and forensic science and medical professionals.
The effectiveness of DNA evidence in criminal investigations and
prosecutions is unquestioned. As of January 2014, the use of the FBI's
National DNA Index has provided important assistance in more than
224,000 investigations. In my home State of Virginia, the database
contains more than 366,000 offender profiles and has aided in nearly
8,500 criminal investigations.
Due to a number of factors, including the expansion in recent years
of the number of States requiring arrestees to submit DNA samples, the
demand for the testing of these samples continues to outpace the
capacity of State and local government laboratories.
In 2011, laboratories processed 10 percent more DNA cases than in
2009. However, backlogs persisted as demand grew by 16 percent during
the same period, illustrating the need for the continued support of
this vital program.
I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation,
reauthorizing the Debbie Smith program, to continue the reduction of
DNA backlogs nationwide.
I thank Debbie Smith for her contribution to this effort and for her
courage in standing up for millions of others.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I rise in support of H.R. 4323, the Debbie Smith Act, which was
originally enacted in 2004. During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we
have the opportunity to take an important step in continuing a program
that helps address the problem of sexual assault.
[[Page H2981]]
The Debbie Smith Act has helped State and local law enforcement
reduce the Nation's large backlog of untested DNA samples. Grants are
used to hire personnel and to purchase supplies for processing samples
and for including them in the Combined DNA Index System.
Grants have also been directed to DNA training and technical
assistance for law enforcement and courts and to sexual assault nurse
examiner programs. Crime laboratories have almost unanimously reported
that the DNA Backlog Grant Program is essential to their capacity to
process samples, but the backlog still remains.
Hundreds of thousands of DNA samples, each representing an unsolved
crime, remains untested. Regrettably, over 200 untested samples remain
in Los Angeles alone that have outlasted the statute of limitations for
prosecuting cases, so we have to do everything we can to process these
samples.
We must also do everything we can to strengthen the nationwide
database and reduce the DNA backlog, so that cases of sexual assault
can be solved and prosecuted without delay. Reauthorizing the Debbie
Smith Act will bring perpetrators of sexual assault to justice before
they can attack more victims.
I am proud to acknowledge that Debbie Smith is a constituent of mine.
She lives in Charles City County, Virginia. She waited more than 6
years for the DNA from her rape kit to be processed and checked against
the national database in order to identify her attacker.
Her attacker was identified, but unfortunately, during those 6 years,
he attacked at least two other women--crimes that would not have
happened if his DNA had been tested in a more timely manner.
Debbie has spent her time and effort over the last few years with her
organization, HEART, which stands for Hope Exists After Rape Trauma.
She has been advocating for a reduction in the DNA backlog and has been
offering assistance to victims of sexual assault.
I commend my colleague from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte), the chairman of
the Judiciary Committee, and the ranking member, Mr. Conyers, for
working together to expedite the consideration of this bill.
I also want to acknowledge the original author of the Debbie Smith
Act, the gentlelady from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney), for her
hard work and continued advocacy on behalf of sexual assault victims.
I urge my colleagues to join me in further honoring the work of
Debbie Smith's by voting for this bill--to reauthorize the bill that
bears her name.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers), the ranking member of the full
committee.
Mr. CONYERS. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, this is a bill that demonstrates that members of
different parties with different philosophies can come together when
the cause is so clear and straightforward, and we come here today,
supporting the 4-year reauthorization of three programs established
under the Debbie Smith Act of 2004.
These programs facilitate a holistic approach to the use of DNA in
sexual assault cases by providing Federal grants to address the huge
DNA backlogs and to provide DNA training and technical assistance to
States and local law enforcement agencies.
The Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program is named for Debbie Smith
who, as my dear friend Mr. Scott has indicated, was kidnapped from her
home and was raped in nearby woods.
The attacker remained unidentified for more than 6 years until a DNA
sample, collected from a convicted person who was serving time in a
Virginia State prison for other crimes, revealed his identity as her
attacker. The delay in identifying her attacker caused Debbie Smith
untold psychological and emotional torture.
I am very pleased by the fact that, along with Chairman Bob Goodlatte
and Mr. Scott and Judge Poe, we were able to meet with Mrs. Smith and
her husband, who honor us by witnessing this proceeding that is now
going on.
I want to commend not only the chairman of the Judiciary Committee,
Mr. Goodlatte, and the ranking member of the Crime Subcommittee, Bobby
Scott, but also Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin and Judge Poe, who all
have worked so hard to make this law work.
We are reducing the backlog, but the person who championed this issue
the most was Carolyn Maloney, and I am happy to recommend her for the
commendation that she deserves.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler), who has been working hard on this
issue for a number of years.
Mr. NADLER. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 4323, the Debbie
Smith Act.
Every 2 minutes in this country, someone is sexually assaulted. That
means, by the time I finish my remarks today, at least one man, woman,
or child will have been brutally attacked.
By the end of this year, more than 200,000 people--nearly all of them
women and girls--will have been victimized in the most inhuman way.
Only 60 percent of victims will ever report their attacks, and barely 3
percent of attackers will ever serve a day in prison.
These statistics are staggering, and we are not doing all we can to
ensure that every victim has access to the justice he deserves. Too
often, victims who are willing to report their attacks face invasive
examinations, which leave them feeling victimized all over again.
They then wait, often living in fear and with no information from law
enforcement, while their rape kits collect dust in evidence lockers or
sit on lab shelves. Every untested rape kit is a lost opportunity to
provide justice and to catch dangerous criminals.
To see the importance of rape kit testing, look no further than New
York City. In 1999, the city enacted a policy to test every rape kit
and to eliminate its backlog of over 17,000 kits, and 15 years later,
that policy has made a world of difference.
Every kit collected in New York is tested within 30 to 60 days, and
the arrest rate for rape has skyrocketed from 40 percent to 70 percent.
Compare that to the national rate of 24 percent. Clearly, the more rape
kits we test, the more rapists we get off the streets.
Imagine what would happen if we tested all of the 400,000 rape kits
that are still sitting on the shelves today around the country.
I have fought to end the rape kit backlog for nearly 15 years. In
2000, I supported the passage of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination
Act, which provided $40 million to help States analyze DNA evidence.
When the rape kit backlog failed to decrease by 2002, I introduced
the Rape Kit DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act, which would have
authorized $250 million to help police departments finance rape kit
testing.
In 2004, I cosponsored and worked closely with Mr. Sensenbrenner and
others to enact the Justice for All Act that created the Debbie Smith
DNA Backlog Grant Program, which authorized hundreds of millions of
dollars for DNA testing and strengthened the ability of State and local
law enforcement to test rape kits.
While I am pleased that we will reauthorize the Debbie Smith Grant
Program today, I am disappointed that we are not considering a complete
reauthorization of the Justice for All Act, including the Kirk
Bloodsworth Post-Conviction DNA Testing Grant programs.
DNA evidence is vital to providing justice for all people by putting
violent criminals behind bars and by exonerating wrongfully convicted
individuals. We should not allow a vital program to lapse because it is
less politically expedient.
It is my hope that we can work together to pass a complete
reauthorization of the Justice for All Act as our colleagues in the
Senate claim to do shortly. In the 10 years since the creation of the
Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program, we have seen much progress, but
the backlog continues to be a major problem, and prosecuting is uneven
across the country.
I commend the chairman of the committee and the ranking member and
all
[[Page H2982]]
of the other Members who have worked on this bill. I urge my colleagues
to support the bill and to work towards a day when no rape kit goes
untested and every victim of sexual assault sees justice.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the
gentlelady from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney), the author of the
original legislation.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Thank you, and I thank all of my
colleagues for this important bipartisan legislation.
Mr. Speaker, there is no more important thing a government can do
than protect its citizens from violent crime, and today's
reauthorization of the Debbie Smith Act, until 2019, does just that. It
will protect women, and it will save lives.
The Debbie Smith Act has been called the most important antirape
legislation ever to have passed this Congress. During Sexual Assault
Awareness Month, April, we are presented with the grim statistics that
every 2 minutes, someone is sexually assaulted in our country.
This bill was first introduced in 2001, after a hearing Steve Horn
and I organized on the use of DNA to convict and exonerate. Since first
being signed into law in 2004, the Debbie Smith Act funds have provided
State and local governments with the tools to eliminate the backlog
that exists around this country.
It is estimated the backlog is of roughly 400,000 kits that are
sitting in warehouses and police departments, and each one of these
kits is representing a life of a woman who has been raped.
It not only represents a peace of mind for her to know that her
rapist will be convicted and put behind bars, but it will prevent
future rapes because the FBI tells us that most rapists will attack
another seven times; so, if we can convict, we can save seven other
lives.
{time} 1745
I want to recognize two extremely brave women who are speaking out on
this issue and have testified before Congress. It is very difficult to
do. I have tried to get people to testify. The only person I could get
to testify was my good friend, Debbie Smith, who inspired me and others
after her wonderful testimony in 2001. She is also joined by Natasha
Alexenko, founder of Natasha's Justice Project, working to completely
eliminate the backlog. Natasha's and Debbie's stories tell the need of
this legislation.
My friend, Congressman Scott, spoke about his constituent, Debbie.
Natasha was raped, and it took 15 years for them to process her kit.
During that 15 years, her rapist raped other women, was involved in sex
trafficking, selling drugs, and a slew of other crimes across this
country. When her kit was processed, he was put behind bars. If they
had processed it earlier, it would have prevented all of this other
damage to women and to society as a whole.
One of the tragic costs of this type of crime is that those who
survive a sexual assault carry wounds that are not readily visible.
They are 3 times more likely to suffer from depression, 13 times more
likely to abuse alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs, and 4
times more likely to contemplate suicide. Each rape kit that gets
tested brings these survivors closer to justice and prevents future
rapes.
Since I introduced the first version of this legislation in 2001, it
has always received wide bipartisan support. I thank Chairman
Goodlatte, Ranking Member Conyers, members of the Judiciary Committee,
Mr. Poe, Ms. Bass, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Scott, and former Congressman Mark
Green for all of their hard work.
I hope that this bill will quickly pass the Senate and become law.
This is one of those rare bills that virtually guarantees that it will
put real criminals behind bars and protect people more effectively from
one of the most traumatic assaults imaginable: rape. The grants
provided to States and local governments will allow them to
significantly reduce or eliminate their backlogs.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlelady an
additional 30 seconds.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. By using a national DNA
database, it helps them identify criminals.
The bill that Mr. Poe and I passed earlier this year, the SAFER Act,
will direct that 75 percent of this money go directly for the backlog.
It is roughly $113 million. It is important. It is a moral imperative
to eliminate the rape backlog so that women will not be victimized
simply because their government failed to act and failed to process
this important evidence.
This is an important day. I urge my colleagues to unanimously pass
this bill and move it to the Senate and unanimously pass it there.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), a distinguished member of the
Judiciary Committee.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Let me thank the ranking member of the Subcommittee
on Crime, the chairman and ranking member of the full committee, and
Mrs. Maloney for their leadership.
I was on the Crime Subcommittee as this bill was introduced. I was
eager to see it work its will in that early timeframe in the backdrop
of the courage of Debbie Smith. I also recognize Natasha Alexenko, who
I understand is a constituent of Mr. Scott. Those were the early days
in 2001 when we were finding out all over the Nation that rape kits
were actually lost. My city was no different.
This is an important reauthorization because of the grant programs
that are provided. In particular, the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act
authorizes $151 million in grants for State and local DNA labs to
address DNA backlogs. As I indicated, in my own hometown, we were faced
with backlogs and lost kits as well.
The DNA training and technical assistance is extremely important,
helping law enforcement, courts, and forensic scientists. For DNA
training and technical assistance, $30 million is directed to Sexual
Assault Nurse Examiner programs.
There is nothing more lonely than to be raped and then, on top of it,
not see your case pursued.
I want to thank the Houston Area Women's Center, which involves
itself in sexual violence against women, as well as Kathryn Griffin,
who has worked with prostitutes and others who have actually been
raped.
In Houston, decades-old rape kits that sat untested have identified
at least one-third of potential offenders in cases where there was
sufficient DNA, according to the Houston Police Department. And I
congratulate the city of Houston. Combined with dollars from the Debbie
Smith Reauthorization and the city's own investment, we now have a new
DNA lab that is open and ready for business to ensure that the victims
of crime and sexual assault are not left along the highway of despair.
In my district alone, 6,600 rape kits have been cleared as of August
2013. That is an important step forward.
I also look forward to continuing to work on issues dealing with DNA
of those who involve themselves in human trafficking in a national
database.
I also want to give another reason why this is extremely important.
As I left Houston, in my own congressional district, we found that,
unfortunately, the State of Texas decided to put 23 violent sexual
offenders in a neighborhood in what is called a halfway house. Those
individuals are at the back side of their incarceration. Mr. Speaker, I
would say that it is a dangerous set of circumstances when these
individuals will be among children and women and be without the
necessary security in a neighborhood.
And so this DNA for rape kits is one aspect of the need that is being
addressed in helping women, again, not feel lonely and left without
refuge and the ability to access justice.
I support H.R. 4323. I ask my colleagues to support it, and remember
there is a larger and broader picture we must look at in order to
address the violence against women.
Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of both the Judiciary Committee and a
co-sponsor, I
[[Page H2983]]
rise in strong support of H.R. 4323, the ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization
Act of 2014,'' which reauthorizes three grant programs to address DNA
backlogs and provide DNA training and technical assistance on local,
state, and federal levels.
It is essential that these programs be reauthorized so that the
backlog of unprocessed rape kits can be reduced and then eliminated and
perpetrators of sexual assault crimes can be prosecuted and convicted.
There is an ever-present need to continue robust funding for programs
such as the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program in order to make
sure victims do not fall through the cracks of the system.
Women who have been raped have a right to expect police to thoroughly
investigate the case and prosecute the offenders; however, many rape
kits across the country are never even tested, and the perpetrators
never face justice.
Mr. Speaker, the number of backlogged DNA samples was in excess of
100,000 nationwide as recently as January 2010.
H.R. 4323 reauthorizes for four years (until the end of fiscal year
2019) the following programs:
1. ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization'' ($151 million/fiscal year):
grants for state and local DNA crime laboratories to address DNA
backlogs and enhance their capacity.
2. DNA training and technical assistance ($12.5 million/fiscal year):
directed to law enforcement, courts, forensic scientists, and
corrections.
3. DNA training and technical assistance ($30 million/fiscal year):
directed to sexual assault nurse examiner (``SANE'') programs.
In my congressional district, these grant programs have resulted in
forensic laboratories being hired to clear much of the Houston Police
Department's backlog of untested DNA benefit from this type of
legislation.
Just within the past year, decades-old rape kits that sat untested in
Houston have identified at least one-third of potential offenders in
cases where there was sufficient DNA, according to the Houston Police
Department.
In my district more than 6,600 rape kits have been cleared as of
August 2013 because of the funding made possible by the grant programs
that H.R. 4323 will reauthorize. This record of success highlights the
importance and continuing need to provide adequate funding so law
enforcement agencies can conduct necessary DNA testing and training.
Mr. Speaker, the DNA Initiative is an invaluable tool for law
enforcement today, and it will continue to be a legislative priority of
mine. That is why I am pleased to co-sponsor H.R. 4323 and urge my
colleagues to join me in voting to approve this critically important
legislation.
Mr. GOODLATTE. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my
time to encourage my colleagues to support the reauthorization of the
Debbie Smith Act. I thank my colleague from Virginia for his support.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
I recognize the many people who have worked very hard to bring us to
the reauthorization today of this important legislation.
I particularly want to thank Congresswoman Maloney for her leadership
from the original legislation to today. Congresswoman Karen Bass of
California unfortunately could not be with us for this debate this
evening, but she has played a role as the lead cosponsor of this
legislation. I thank the ranking member of the full committee and the
ranking member of the Crime Subcommittee, Mr. Conyers and Mr. Scott,
for their hard work on this as well.
I certainly thank the chairman of the Crime Subcommittee, Mr.
Sensenbrenner, for his contribution, as well at the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Poe) for his work in this area on this and other legislation
affecting crimes against women.
Mr. Speaker, this is important legislation that will help avoid many,
many future victims. I really thank Debbie Smith and Natasha Alexenko
for being with us when we talked about this issue this afternoon. I
want to thank them for their courage in speaking out about it. They are
not only helping to have a better understanding on the part of the
public of the nature of this problem, but they are actually helping to
fight crime.
This Congress will be helping to fight crime when we get these
perpetrators of these horrific events much, much more quickly than
these multiyear delays that we have heard about tonight. We need to get
them quickly. We need to prosecute the guilty. We need to exonerate the
innocent and put the guilty ones in prison, where they cannot
perpetrate more of these crimes. Some of them are out on the streets
for additional years perpetrating multitudinous crimes. This is a
serious problem. It will save the taxpayers money by reducing the
amount of crime that is perpetrated in our society.
I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4323.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________