S. 230 – Preserving American Justice Act

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Updated April 14, 2026 at 12:52 AM UTC

The Preserving American Justice Act directs the Attorney General to investigate whether foreign governments, starting with Saudi Arabia, have helped their nationals leave the United States while awaiting trial or sentencing. It requires annual reports on all foreign nationals who flee under those circumstances, creates a list of countries that assist such departures, and imposes visa bans on senior Saudi officials and their families until the fugitive is returned. The bill also removes a tax benefit for any foreign government placed on that list, preventing them from excluding certain investment income from U.S. taxes.

Key Provisions

Within 90 days, the Attorney General must investigate if Saudi Arabia helped specific Saudi nationals escape while awaiting U.S. criminal proceedings.
If assistance is found, the Attorney General must report the findings to Congress and the Secretary of State.
The Secretary of State may not issue or must revoke visas for senior Saudi officials, their immediate families, and royal descendants until the fugitive is extradited, with limited diplomatic exceptions.
The Attorney General, together with the Bureau of Justice Statistics and Homeland Security, must annually collect and publish data on all foreign nationals who leave the U.S. while awaiting trial or sentencing.
A list of countries that materially assist such departures must be created and maintained, with annual reporting to Congress on how the list is determined.
Foreign governments placed on the list lose the Section 892 tax exclusion for certain U.S. investment income, effective 30 days after being added to the list.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action

SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S681)

Finance Committee

January 25, 2019

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

January 25, 2019

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S681)

Finance Committee

January 25, 2019

Floor Debate

1 member

What members said about S. 230 on the floor

1 Democrat

Sen. Ron WydenD-OR · Jan 25, 2019

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Preserving American Justice Act to ensure that foreign governments face serious consequences if they assist their citizens to escape legal accountability in…

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Preserving American Justice Act to ensure that foreign governments face serious consequences if they assist their citizens to escape legal accountability in the United States.

Recently, Oregon's largest newspaper, The Oregonian, uncovered that five Saudi nationals with criminal charges departed the Nation before facing justice. These men were arrested for serious crimes including vehicular murder of an innocent teenager, sexual assault, rape, and child pornography. According to news reports, U.S. government officials believe the Saudi government helped these five men with actions ranging from posting bail to facilitating their escape from the United States. These reports claiming the Saudi government is whisking away criminals facing justice in Oregon show a shocking disdain for our Nation's criminal justice system. Given the disturbing similarities in these five cases, a thorough investigation is essential to better understand the involvement of the Saudi government.

When anyone commits a crime in the United States, they must be held accountable. The Trump administration has failed to explain what, if anything, it is doing to ensure these men face American justice. That failure is completely unacceptable. Foreign governments cannot disregard our laws and abuse diplomatic privileges by helping criminals escape. No one is above the law, and I am committed to making sure the Saudi government understands that it cannot behave this way here in Oregon or anywhere in the United States.

The legislation I introduced today would direct the Department of Justice to investigate these five cases and bring to light the involvement of the Saudi government. If the Department of Justice concludes that the Saudi government was involved, then my bill would bar Saudi Arabia's leaders from the United States until their government returns the suspects who have fled. The legislation would also create a major tax penalty on governments and sovereign wealth funds for any country that help its citizens escape American justice. More broadly, my legislation would help Americans understand how widespread this practice is, direct the Department of Justice to maintain a list of any foreign governments that help their citizens evade American justice, and create tough consequences for those governments and their leaders.

I believe that my colleagues who talk about ``putting America First'' would agree that foreign governments cannot undermine American laws. I'm all for doing more to protecting Americans from real threats and ensuring that the victims of these crimes get the justice they deserve in an American court of law. So I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting measures that would hold foreign governments accountable.

Sen. Ron WydenD-OR · Jan 25, 2019

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Preserving American Justice Act to ensure that foreign governments face serious consequences if they assist their citizens to escape legal accountability in…

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Preserving American Justice Act to ensure that foreign governments face serious consequences if they assist their citizens to escape legal accountability in the United States.

Recently, Oregon's largest newspaper, The Oregonian, uncovered that five Saudi nationals with criminal charges departed the Nation before facing justice. These men were arrested for serious crimes including vehicular murder of an innocent teenager, sexual assault, rape, and child pornography. According to news reports, U.S. government officials believe the Saudi government helped these five men with actions ranging from posting bail to facilitating their escape from the United States. These reports claiming the Saudi government is whisking away criminals facing justice in Oregon show a shocking disdain for our Nation's criminal justice system. Given the disturbing similarities in these five cases, a thorough investigation is essential to better understand the involvement of the Saudi government.

When anyone commits a crime in the United States, they must be held accountable. The Trump administration has failed to explain what, if anything, it is doing to ensure these men face American justice. That failure is completely unacceptable. Foreign governments cannot disregard our laws and abuse diplomatic privileges by helping criminals escape. No one is above the law, and I am committed to making sure the Saudi government understands that it cannot behave this way here in Oregon or anywhere in the United States.

The legislation I introduced today would direct the Department of Justice to investigate these five cases and bring to light the involvement of the Saudi government. If the Department of Justice concludes that the Saudi government was involved, then my bill would bar Saudi Arabia's leaders from the United States until their government returns the suspects who have fled. The legislation would also create a major tax penalty on governments and sovereign wealth funds for any country that help its citizens escape American justice. More broadly, my legislation would help Americans understand how widespread this practice is, direct the Department of Justice to maintain a list of any foreign governments that help their citizens evade American justice, and create tough consequences for those governments and their leaders.

I believe that my colleagues who talk about ``putting America First'' would agree that foreign governments cannot undermine American laws. I'm all for doing more to protecting Americans from real threats and ensuring that the victims of these crimes get the justice they deserve in an American court of law. So I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting measures that would hold foreign governments accountable.

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued January 25, 2019

II

116th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 230

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

January 25 (legislative day, January 24), 2019

Mr. Wyden (for himself and Mr. Merkley) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

A BILL

To require a report on foreign nationals who flee from the United States while awaiting trial or sentencing for a criminal offense committed in the United States, to establish a list of countries who have assisted or facilitated with such departures, to penalize parties connected to such departures, and to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to prohibit the exclusion from gross income from certain investments made by foreign governments who are identified on such list.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Preserving American Justice Act.

2.

Investigation of certain foreign nationals

(a)

Investigation

Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall complete an investigation of whether the Government of Saudi Arabia materially assisted or facilitated any citizen or national of Saudi Arabia, including Abdulrahman Noorah, Abdulaziz Al Duways, Waleed Ali Alharthi, Suliman Ali Algwaiz, and Ali Hussain Alhamoud, in departing from the United States while the citizen or national was awaiting trial or sentencing for a criminal offense committed in the United States.

(b)

Report

If the Attorney General determines that the Government of Saudi Arabia did materially assist or facilitate a citizen or national of Saudi Arabia as described in subsection (a), the Attorney General shall submit a written report to Congress and the Secretary of State detailing the findings of the investigation.

(c)

Prohibition on issuance and revocation of certain visas

(1)

In general

Except as provided under paragraph (2), if the Secretary of State receives a report under subsection (b), the Secretary of State may not issue a visa, and shall revoke any visa issued, to a Member of the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia, an immediate family member of a Member of the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia, a descendant of the King of Saudi Arabia, or an immediate family member of such a descendant until the date on which the citizen or national of Saudi Arabia described in the report is extradited to the United States for completion of the trial or sentencing.

(2)

Exception

The Secretary of State may issue a visa otherwise prohibited under paragraph (1), or not revoke a visa otherwise required to be revoked under such paragraph, if the Secretary determines that it is necessary—

(A)

to enable the President to receive an Ambassador or other public Minister under Article II, section 3, of the Constitution in a manner consistent with the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations; or

(B)

to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United States, or with any other applicable international obligations.

(3)

Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations defined

In this subsection, the term Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations means—

(A)

the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, done at Vienna April 18, 1961; and

(B)

the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, done at Vienna April 24, 1963.

3.

Treatment of foreign nationals fleeing the United States during criminal proceedings

(a)

Foreign national defined

In this section, the term foreign national means an individual in the United States who is not a citizen of the United States.

(b)

Report

Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, and once every year thereafter, the Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall—

(1)

collect information from State courts and law enforcement agencies on any foreign nationals who have, during the reporting period, departed from the United States while awaiting trial or sentencing for a criminal offense committed in the United States; and

(2)

publish a report based on the information collected under paragraph (1).

(c)

List of countries

(1)

In general

The Attorney General, in coordination with the Director of National Intelligence, shall establish and maintain a list of countries the governments of which have, in the determination of the Attorney General, materially assisted or facilitated the departure of any foreign national included in the report required under subsection (b).

(2)

Determination

In establishing and maintaining the list required under paragraph (1), the Attorney General—

(A)

shall take into account the information in the annual reports published under subsection (b)(2); and

(B)

may include or remove any country as the Attorney General determines appropriate.

(3)

Report to Congress

Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and once every year thereafter, the Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report on the procedures used by the Attorney General in determining which countries are on the list maintained under paragraph (1).

(d)

Loss of tax exclusion for foreign governments included on list

Section 892 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d) and by inserting after subsection (b) the following new subsection:

(c)

Exception

Subsection (a)(1) shall not apply to any foreign government which is identified on the list maintained by the Attorney General pursuant to section 3(c) of the Preserving American Justice Act for any period beginning with the date that is 30 days after the date such foreign government is added to such list and ending with the date such foreign government is removed from such list.

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