Mr. President, on a separate note, for the last few days, we have been celebrating National Police Week, when we honor the men and women who help keep our communities safe. They have chosen a difficult and often dangerous life, dedicated…
Mr. President, on a separate note, for the last few days, we have been celebrating National Police Week, when we honor the men and women who help keep our communities safe. They have chosen a difficult and often dangerous life, dedicated to enforcing the law, defending our civil liberties, and protecting our cities and neighborhoods.
Sometimes law enforcement officers intentionally put themselves in harm's way for our benefit, and sometimes they even sacrifice their lives for their fellow citizens. The police in my State are no exception. In fact, according to one FBI report, Texas had more law enforcement officers die in the line of duty in 2017 than any other State.
Because it is National Police Week, I would like to mention two important pieces of legislation that are high priorities for law enforcement groups, and I am happy to be the chief sponsor of both.
The first is called the Justice Served Act. Its companion legislation passed just yesterday in the House. I am grateful to my colleague Representative John Carter for helping to make sure that happened.
The bill would provide grants for State and local governments to prosecute cold cases. These are older crimes that have languished but are reignited through DNA evidence, including evidence obtained from backlogged rape kits. By making sure that newly tested evidence is used to investigate and prosecute unsolved crimes, the Justice Served Act would ensure that vital criminals are brought to justice instead of remaining free and on our streets. This will give crime victims and their families closure and relief and deliver justice.
Once new DNA evidence is used and the wrongdoers are prosecuted, the crime victims will know that their attackers no longer remain at large. The evidence can also help exonerate those who have been wrongfully accused or even convicted.
Especially this week, I am proud to have the support of the Major County Sheriffs of America, the Fraternal Order of Police, the National Association of Police Organizations, the Major Cities Chiefs, and other law enforcement organizations. I am also grateful to have the support of various organizations that support sexual assault victims, as well as prosecutors' groups.
Finally, I would just like to say that I appreciate my cosponsor, the senior Senator from Minnesota, who has helped this bill continue to move through the legislative process.
Another bill I would like to mention as long as I can--seasonal allergies are getting to me, like so many of us--is the Project Safe Neighborhoods Authorization Act of 2018. We hope to have it hotlined this week because, like the Justice Served Act, it is a high priority for law enforcement groups across the country.
Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide partnership among State, Federal, local law enforcement, and prosecutors that use data-driven, evidence-based, and trauma-informed practices to reduce violent crime.
When I was the attorney general of Texas, then-Governor George W. Bush and I administered a program known as Texas Exile, in which we targeted felons who were carrying firearms as part of their carrying out some crime. We targeted those violent offenders by concentrating resources on the most important cases. This program involved multiple law enforcement agencies and allowed them to collaborate on a ``Smart on Crime'' approach, focusing efforts on high-level offenders who were responsible for tearing communities and families apart.
Multiple jurisdictions in Texas participated in Project Exile, which, again, was focused on the most violent offenders and the ones who were carrying firearms, which they could not legally possess or use. The result was a staggering reduction in crime rates and homicides. Project Exile later became the basis for the Department of Justice's nationwide Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which has been ongoing for more than a decade. I am happy that soon we will reauthorize it.
Under Project Safe Neighborhoods, Federal, State, and local law enforcement cooperate and focus their enforcement efforts on organized criminal networks and repeat offenders who are driving crime rates in a particular area. One of those regions is Northern Virginia, where a regional task force composed of 13 local, State, and Federal law enforcement agencies has made tremendous strides in eradicating gang violence perpetrated by groups like MS-13. My colleague Barbara Comstock's district is in that region, and she has been the bill's biggest champion in the House.
Since its inception in 2001, Project Safe Neighborhoods has been deployed by both Democratic and Republican administrations to reduce violent crime. According to a Michigan State University study funded by the Department of Justice in 2013, Project Safe Neighborhoods was associated with a 13.1-percent decrease in violent crimes in cities with high rates of program participation, including double-digit reductions in total firearms, crimes, and homicides in every city examined by the study.
Our bill will reauthorize the program through fiscal year 2021 in amounts consistent with current appropriations levels. Additionally, it will require participating entities to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of individuals with leadership roles in criminal organizations, and it will strengthen innovation and prevention initiatives on the local level.
I yield the floor.