Crime

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement: “I applaud President Biden for the actions announced today to reform how the federal government treats marijuana. President Biden said repeatedly on the campaign trail that nobody should be in jail solely for using or possessing marijuana. I was honored to co-chair the Democratic Party’s 2020 Platform Criminal Justice Unity Task Force, and this announcement is consistent with the recommendations we made to then-candidate Biden.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), a Vice Chair of the House Democratic Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, issued the following statement after the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1808, the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022: “Assault weapons are manufactured for the sole purpose of killing many people quickly. They have been used in mass shootings all over the country. There is no constructive use for these weapons and they should be banned.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), a Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, entered the following statement into the Congressional record for the debate on S. 2938, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act: “Madam Speaker, I rise today to share my concerns regarding the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. While I support the underlying bill and appreciate that several Republican Senators finally came to the table to work with Democrats to address our nation’s gun violence epidemic, I remain troubled by the legislation’s possible expansion of the federal death penalty and the creation of broad new criminal offenses that may disproportionately impact Black and Brown communities.

WASHINGTON  – Representatives Bobby Scott (VA-03), Steve Chabot (OH-01), Sheila Jackson Lee (TX- 18), and Tom Emmer (MN-06) introduced the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Reauthorization Act. The legislation would reauthorize for five years the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP), a critically important grant program which allows states and localities to develop programming that connects those with mental illness and substance abuse issues with evidence-based and comprehensive treatment within the criminal justice system. Among the reforms in the bill are the centering of suicide prevention as a key goal of the program, increasing access to case management services, bolstering the roles of co-responder and crisis intervention teams, training law enforcement, and continuing strong support of mental health courts.

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Today, President Biden signed an historic executive order (EO) to advance effective, accountable policing and criminal justice practices that will improve public trust and strengthen public safety as the nation marks the second anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. “Americans from all walks of life took to the streets after the senseless murder of George Floyd to protest police brutality and demand accountability, transparency, and reform to our justice system,” said Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03). “That is why I was very grateful to see President Biden mark this solemn anniversary of Mr. Floyd’s murder with action. The President’s executive order seeks to improve public trust between communities and law enforcement with enhanced transparency and accountability measures. An important part of achieving this goal is comprehensive data collection of use of force and deaths in custody.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03) sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland reiterating his earlier demand for a federal investigation into the police conduct and killing of Donovon Lynch. This letter follows the decision by the Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney’s announcement yesterday that the police officer responsible for fatally shooting Mr. Lynch would not face criminal charges. “The Commonwealth’s Attorney for Virginia Beach announced yesterday that he will not file criminal charges against the officer involved in the fatal shooting leaving many questions unanswered about what occurred that evening,” wrote Congressman Scott.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1693, the Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of the Law (EQUAL) Act: “For years, we have known that harsh drug sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine have created a racially disparate impact on Black communities. The bipartisan EQUAL Act is the next step on the long road toward eliminating this unfair sentencing disparity. In 2009, I led the effort in the House to eliminate this disparity in the Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing Act.