International Chiefs of Police, Sens. Webb, Hatch, Specter & Graham Urge Senate Vote on National Criminal Justice Commission Act

Excerpts from: International Chiefs of Police, Sens. Webb, Hatch, Specter & Graham Urge Senate Vote on National Criminal Justice Commission Act
March 9, 2010
Washington, DC— Members of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) from across the nation today joined Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) and leading Judiciary Committee members, Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Arlen Specter (D-PA), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), to push for final passage of the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, S. 714. The legislation, introduced by Senator Webb on March 26, 2009, was voted out of the Judiciary Committee January 19, and awaits a vote on the Senate floor.

The National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2010, which would create a blue-ribbon commission charged with comprehensively reviewing the nation’s criminal justice system and offering concrete recommendations for reform, has gained the bipartisan support of 35 members of the Senate and endorsements from over 100 organizations representing a broad spectrum of the criminal justice community.

The IACP is the oldest and largest non-profit membership organization of police executives, with more than 22,000 members in over 100 countries. For more than 20 years, the IACP has advocated for the creation of a commission that would follow in the footsteps of the 1965 presidential commission on law enforcement and the administration of justice.

“I am very grateful to the International Association of Chiefs of Police for having entered into a dialogue with us about how to improve our approach, and for throwing their support behind this important legislation,” said Senator Webb. “We started with two pieces of reality: we have by far the world’s largest incarceration rate—with 5% of the world’s population and 25% of the world’s prison population—and, at the same time, Americans will tell you that they don’t feel any safer today than they did a year ago.”

To read more about the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, please visit:http://webb.senate.gov/issuesandlegislation/Criminal_Justice_Banner.cfm

To download photos of today’s event, visit:http://webb.senate.gov/photos/photogallery/S714_Rally_for_Final_Vote.cfm

To read the February 13, 2010 New York Times editorial, “A Blue Ribbon Look at Criminal Justice,” visit:http://webb.senate.gov/newsroom/newsarticles/02-13-2010-01.cfm

To watch a highlight video from today's event, please visit:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5niWyJ_uttE