October 6, 2004

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Tom Petri today voted in support of a bipartisan plan protecting victims of violent crime by using DNA technology to keep criminals off the street. The Justice for All Act overwhelmingly passed in the House by 393-14.

"We always say that we want justice to be swift and sure, and that's a lot easier to accomplish if we use the tools now available to us to make sure that justice is rendered accurately - that it's justice in fact," said Petri. "In recent years DNA evidence has exonerated 151 prison inmates, many of whom have already served 10, 20 or more years. It is a crucial tool to make sure that the guilty go to prison and that the innocent go free."

The Justice for All Act will enhance the rights and protections of everyone within the criminal justice system. The plan accomplishes this by:

• Including $755 million to enact President Bush's initiative to reduce the backlog of unanalyzed DNA evidence (Experts believe hundreds of thousands of rape kits and other DNA evidence remains unanalyzed in crime labs across the country);
  
  
• Establishing a new set of statutory victims' rights that are both enforceable in a court of law and supported by fully- funded victims' assistance programs; and
  
  
• Providing a comprehensive DNA plan that seeks to ensure that the true offender is caught and convicted for the crime committed.

The plan also:

• Incorporates the Innocence Protection Act, including the authorization of $500 million over five years to improve legal representation in death penalty cases;
  
  
• Enhances access to post-conviction DNA testing, providing over $200 million over the next five years in additional grant money to train law enforcement, correctional, court, and medical personnel on the use of DNA evidence; and
  
  
• Funds research to improve forensic technology, authorizing $10 million per year in grants to states, local governments, and tribal governments to eliminate forensic backlogs.