[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 147 (Friday, September 20, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H5544]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING JUDGE JULIE KOCUREK FOR HER BRAVERY

  (Mr. SESSIONS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor Judge Julie 
Kocurek, who is the 390th State District judge in Austin, Texas.
  In 2015, the judge survived an assassination attempt by a criminal 
defendant seeking revenge for a decision she made in his case. Judge 
Kocurek and her family were stalked for a month before the individual 
attacked her, shooting her four times. Judge Kocurek miraculously 
survived and bravely returned to the bench to ensure that justice 
prevails over violence.
  Mr. Speaker, this is happening on an increased basis all across this 
country. I am proud to be a cosponsor of H.R. 8093, the Countering 
Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act, introduced in this House by 
Chairman   Michael McCaul and the late Sheila Jackson Lee and in the 
Senate by Senator Cornyn and Senator Coons.
  The bill would help judges by creating a State judicial threat 
intelligence and resource center to provide guidance and best practices 
for State judges. It informs law enforcement.
  Mr. Speaker, I know firsthand the threats judges face because my 
father served as chief justice of the Western District of Texas in San 
Antonio at a time when one of his colleagues, the Honorable John H. 
Wood, Jr., was shot in the back by a criminal and killed.
  I think that we need to pay attention to crime and criminals better 
in this country, especially where they aim themselves at judges and our 
judicial system.

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