U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and 21 of their Republican colleagues introduced a legislative package to clarify and strengthen violent crime laws related to homicide, bank robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, and other offenses, according to a statement released last week.
“The Combating Violent and Dangerous Crime Act resolves discrepancies brought on by conflicting court decisions and clarifies congressional intent regarding crimes of violence and their respective penalties. Despite an ongoing crime wave, no Democrats have agreed to co-sponsor the fixes,” said the statement.
“The Democrats’ ‘Defund the Police’ movement has emboldened criminals, undermined law enforcement, and contributed to the historic crime wave devastating American cities and suburbs,” Blackburn said.
“I joined 22 of my colleagues to strengthen punishments for violent criminals, but the radical left is intent on blocking this effort to push forward their pro-crime agenda. Tennesseans who are victims of homicides, carjackings, and kidnappings need laws that hold criminals accountable and combat the crime wave. Against the wishes of the radical left, I will not give up on making those laws a reality,” she said.
Grassley said crime is “skyrocketing” all across the country.
“Carjackings, homicides, attacks on law enforcement are all up. We have a duty to ensure that penalties for federal offenses serve as a deterrent and that any ambiguity from split court decisions is rectified so that perpetrators can be held accountable. This bill includes a number of small fixes that will go a long way in improving justice and preventing future crimes,” he said.
“Unfortunately, we don’t yet have bipartisan support to advance these modest, but meaningful, reforms. American communities are suffering under a scourge of lawlessness, so I hope we get some cooperation soon and I’ll keep reaching across the aisle to get it,” Grassley said.
The statement said, “Many communities across the country continue to experience steadily increasing violent crime. Murder rates increased 30 percent in 2020 and continued climbing in 2021. Carjackings, particularly in urban areas, are on the rise, with some cities recording up to 400 percent spikes.”
“Overdose deaths surpassed 100,000 last year, with fentanyl appearing in a variety of substances, including candy-flavored drugs that are marketed to children. 2021 marked the deadliest year for law enforcement since the September 11 attacks in 2001,” it added.
The Combating Violent and Dangerous Crime Act aims to address the ambiguity and conflicting application of existing laws by clarifying congressional intent. It does not establish new offense categories. Among other provisions, the bill:
Clarifies that attempted bank robbery and conspiracy to commit bank robbery are punishable under the current bank robbery statute;
Abolishes an outdated rule that prohibits perpetrators of violent crime from being charged with murder if the victim succumbs to injuries sustained by that violent crime 366 days after the attack;
Rectifies conflicting circuit court decisions that have resulted in a higher burden to charge offenses like assaulting a police officer than Congress intended;
Increases the statutory maximum penalty for carjacking and removes a duplicative intent requirement needed to charge a carjacking offense;
Rectifies conflicting circuit court decisions by clarifying that an attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense involving physical force meets the legal definition of a crime of violence;
Outlaws the marketing of candy-flavored drugs to minors; and
Establishes a new category of violent kidnapping offenses, allowing for greater penalties for violent kidnapping.
The National District Attorneys Association endorsed the measure.
“NDAA is excited to endorse the Combating Violence and Dangerous Crime Act, an important effort to fix criminal provisions in Title 18 of the Federal Code which ensures prosecutors have the tools needed to hold bad actors accountable. We look forward to working alongside the Senate Judiciary Committee to adopt these commonsense measures to improve public safety,” said Nelson Bunn, executive director, National District Attorneys Association.
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]. Follow Aaron on GETTR, Twitter, Truth Social, and Parler.
Photo “Marsha Blackburn” by Sen. Marsha Blackburn. Photo “Chuck Grassley” by Senator Chuck Grassley. Background Photo “United States Capitol” by David Maiolo. CC BY-SA 3.0.
