Bills
| 3.23.22

Should Murdering or Trying to Kill First Responders be a Factor in Federal Death Penalty Decisions? (H.R. 99)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 99?

(Updated November 4, 2020)

This bill would make the murder or attempted murder of a police officer, firefighter, or other first responder an “aggravating” factor in death penalty determinations. It would come into play in cases involving federal jurisdiction (an interstate homicide, or it occurred on federal land, etc.) if the first responder was carrying out their duties when the murder or attempted murder was carried out, because of the past performance of their work, or their status as public officials.

Argument in favor

Murdering or attempting to murder police officers and other first responders who go in harm’s way to protect the public should be an aggravating factor when the death penalty is considered as a sentence.

Argument opposed

The law shouldn’t make something that’s already a crime worse because of the status or occupation of the victim, especially when considering a sentence as controversial as the death penalty.

Impact

The first responders who are victims of murder or attempted murder and their families; those convicted of the murder or attempted murder of an on-duty first responder; and judges considering the death penalty for a relevant convict.

Cost of H.R. 99

The CBO estimates that this bill would have no significant effect on the federal budget.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) reintroduced this bill, along with six others, from the 115th Congress to "continue generating economic growth and opportunity for millions of Americans." Last Congress, Rep. Buchanan introduced this bill to toughen penalties against cop-killers in response to a wave of ambush-style attacks on law enforcement officers in 2016:

“We owe a great debt to police officers and first responders across the country. Attacks against law enforcement officers must end. The strong committee vote today sends a clear message to those who target police — you will be held accountable.”

When this bill was originally introduced, the ACLU opposed it as "unnecessary and duplicative":

"The ACLU opposes this legislation enforcement

The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's Executive Director, Ted Cox, added in a The Hill op-ed:

"[B]ills like the Thin Blue Line Act and the Probation Officer Protection Act are little more than political posturing — posturing that we can ill afford as we build safer and more united communities."

There are currently no cosponsors of this bill in the 116th Congress. In the 115th Congress, this legislation passed the House Judiciary Committee on a 19-12 vote with the support of 21 cosponsors, all of whom were Republicans.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: Red Carlisle via Flickr / Creative Commons)