U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
A constitutional scholar and adjunct professor of law at Widener Law School, Senator Biden is one of the Senate's leading voices on crime and drug policy. U.S. News & World Report described Senator Biden as "the Democrats' chief anti-crime specialist on Capitol Hill." He served as the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee for 16 years, including an extended term as Chairman from 1987-95. Today, Senator Biden is the Chairman of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, where he continues to lead the debate on criminal justice and public safety issues.
The Biden Crime Bill
Since coming to the Senate, Biden has written some of the most innovative and far-reaching criminal justice proposals in recent history, including the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, also known as the Biden Crime Bill. The 1994 law put more than 100,000 additional police officers on the streets; assisted states in building prisons and boot camps to make punishing crime more cost-effective; helped fund "drug courts" that combine intensive supervision, drug testing and treatment for non-violent first offenders; and supported existing juvenile crime prevention programs that are proven successes. The law also banned 19 of the deadliest assault weapons, and increased penalties for interstate gun trafficking. The Biden Crime Bill is widely credited with the dramatic drop in crime rates during the 1990s.
Senator Biden continues to fight tirelessly for federal funding to help state and local police forces hire, train, and equip more officers.
Preventing Violence Against Women
Included in the 1994 Crime Bill is Senator Biden's landmark Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the first federal law to comprehensively address domestic violence and sexual assault. This Act strengthened federal penalties for abusers, stalkers, and repeat sex offenders. It has provided over $4 billion to states to fund battered women's shelters, establish a national domestic violence hotline, and train police, prosecutors and nurses. Senator Biden also authored the widely acclaimed Violence Against Women Act of 2000 which improved existing measures and added new provisions like a dedicated legal assistance program for victims.
Safer Communities and Kids
Understanding the importance of community policing, harnessing the power of twenty-first century technology and balancing principles of accountability with rehabilitation, Senator Biden has crafted many additional criminal law initiatives over the past 30 years, including:
- the laws creating a nationwide system for tracking and registering sex offenders, including the landmark Adam Walsh Act;
- the law to provide federal funding to eliminate the estimated national backlog of 500,000 untested rape kits, to solve crimes and get sex offenders off the streets;
- an innovative public-private partnership to expand the technological capacities of the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
- measures to increase the number and availability of federal prosecutors, public defenders and judges.
Collaring Corporate Criminals
Senator Biden has also been a leader in cracking down on white collar crime and corporate scandals. He authored legislation requiring corporate CEOs to certify the accuracy of their companies' financial statements, or face stiff criminal penalties. He also led the fight to close the "penalty gap" between white collar and violent crimes, requiring corporate crooks to do more time when they defraud the public.
Upholding the Integrity of the Bench
Senator Biden has a well-earned reputation of being tough on judging judicial appointments. When chairman of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, he kept Robert Bork off the Supreme Court. More recently, as a senior member of the Committee, he strongly opposed putting nominees John Roberts and Samuel Alito on the Supreme Court.
Protecting Civil Liberties and Governmental Overreach
In July of 2007, Sen. Biden introduced the National Security with Justice Act to reform United States policies on the apprehension, detention, treatment and transfer of suspected terrorists. The legislation unambiguously prohibits any United States personnel, including members of our intelligence services, from torturing and mistreating detainees. Specifically, Senator Biden's bill closes this loophole by prohibiting all officers and agents of the United States from using techniques of interrogation not authorized by the United States Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogation.
Keeping the Courtroom Doors Open
Over the past three decades, as a vocal Member of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Biden has made sure that the courtroom doors remain open to each and every citizen. He has fought to ensure that any civil litigation reform is fair and balanced, and battled against efforts that would have prevented everyday citizens from fighting big business, whether it is for medical malpractice, consumer fraud or asbestos exposure.