congressional_record: CREC-2006-12-27-pt1-PgE2242
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| granule_id | date | congress | session | volume | issue | title | chamber | granule_class | sub_granule_class | page_start | page_end | speakers | bills | citation | full_text |
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| CREC-2006-12-27-pt1-PgE2242 | 2006-12-27 | 109 | 2 | INTRODUCTION OF THE PRESERVING CRIME VICTIMS' RESTITUTION ACT | HOUSE | EXTENSIONS | ALLOTHER | E2242 | E2242 | [{"name": "Adam B. Schiff", "role": "speaking"}] | [{"congress": "109", "type": "S", "number": "4055"}] | 152 Cong. Rec. E2242 | Congressional Record, Volume 152 Issue 136 (Wednesday, December 27, 2006) [Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 136 (Wednesday, December 27, 2006)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page E2242] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] INTRODUCTION OF THE PRESERVING CRIME VICTIMS' RESTITUTION ACT ______ HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF of california in the house of representatives Wednesday, December 27, 2006 Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I introduced the Preserving Crime Victims' Restitution Act of 2006. This legislation would clarify the procedures that should be applied when a criminal defendant dies after he or she has been duly convicted but before the appeals are final. The need for this legislation has been made evident in recent months. Earlier this year, Enron founder Kenneth Lay was found guilty in both jury and bench trials of 10 criminal charges, including securities fraud, wire fraud involving false and misleading statements, bank fraud and conspiracy. Prosecutors sought $43.5 million in restitution for the victims of Mr. Lay's crimes. However, prior to the scheduled sentencing, Mr. Lay died from a heart attack. As a result, on October 17, 2006, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake wiped clean Mr. Lay's criminal record. The convictions were dismissed under a common law rule known as ``abatement,'' which nullifies a conviction when a defendant dies before the conviction is affirmed on appeal, regardless of the merits of the claim. Judge Lake made clear that his ruling simply followed the binding precedent issued in 2004 by the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the fifth circuit, in a case called United States v. Estate of Parsons. Last month, the Department of Justice withdrew its notice of appeal on Judge Lake's ruling. Congress holds a serious responsibility to address this situation in a timely manner. Unless we act quickly, thousands of Enron shareholders and employees, many of whom lost their entire life savings when Enron's $60 billion in market share and $2 billion in pension funds suddenly disappeared, will further lose out on what little restitution they might otherwise receive on the loss of their hard-earned assets and pension funds. The Preserving Crime Victims' Restitution Act of 2006 is the House companion to S. 4055 in the Senate, introduced by Senators Feinstein and Sessions. The Department of Justice strongly supports the principles contained in this legislation and the effort to fix this problem to ensure that despite a defendant's death, convictions are preserved and restitution remains available for victims of crime. The legislation that I am introducing today will do the following: Establish that if a defendant dies after being convicted of a Federal offense, his conviction will not be vacated. Instead, the court will be directed to issue a statement stating that the defendant was convicted--either by a guilty plea or a verdict finding him guilty--but then died before his case or appeal was final; Codify the current rule that no further punishments can be imposed on a person who is convicted if they die before a sentence is imposed or they have an opportunity to appeal their conviction; Clarify that unlike punishment, all other relief, such as restitution to the victims, that could have been sought against a convicted defendant can continue to be pursued and collected after the defendant's death; Establish a process to ensure that after a person dies, a representative of the estate can stand in the shoes of the defendant and challenge or appeal his or her conviction, and can also secure a lawyer or have one appointed; and Grant the Government an additional 2 years after the defendant's death to file a parallel civil forfeiture lawsuit to recover assets linked to the defendant's crimes when the Government had already filed a criminal forfeiture action to recover the same assets. Enron's collapse in 2001 eliminated thousands of jobs, tens of billions of dollars in market value, and $2 billion in pension plans. Countless former Enron employees and shareholders lost their entire life savings after investing in Enron's retirement plan. These victims have been closely following the years of preparation by the Enron Task Force, and the 4-month jury trial and separate 1-week bench trial, hoping to finally recover some restitution in this criminal case. Despite prosecutors finally securing a conviction, following the death of Mr. Lay, these efforts to achieve justice for the victims to make up for the harm they have suffered were eliminated. Instead, these individuals have been forced to start anew in their efforts to rebuild their lives. Now is the time for Congress to take action to remedy this situation. This legislation offers a fair solution and an orderly process in the event that a criminal defendant dies prior to his final appeal. I am hopeful that Congress will act quickly enough to assist these Enron victims and ensure that such an injustice never occurs again. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. ____________________ |