[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 83 (Wednesday, May 17, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H2386-H2387]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               ERIC'S LAW

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

[[Page H2387]]

  

  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight 
Eric's Law, a piece of legislation I introduced with my Pennsylvanian 
colleague, Congressman Matt Cartwright.
  Eric's Law is named for Eric Williams, a Federal correctional officer 
who was brutally murdered by an inmate at U.S. Penitentiary Canaan in 
Wayne County, Pennsylvania. His murderer's crime largely went 
unpunished, even though 11 out of 12 jurors voted for the death penalty 
because he was already serving a life sentence.
  Current law requires a unanimous decision by the jury to impose the 
death penalty.
  Our legislation permits prosecutors to impanel a second jury for 
sentencing if the first jury in a Federal death penalty case fails to 
reach a unanimous decision on a sentence. This allows for a final, 
definitive decision in death penalty cases that our victims and 
families deserve.
  I thank Eric's father, Don, as well as the Council of Prison Locals 
for their support and endorsement of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, we must do everything in our power to prevent this kind 
of tragedy from reoccurring. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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