REBUTTAL - Grams
Rodgrams@aol.com
Fri, 4 Nov 1994 11:45:03 -0500
Question #3 - November 4, 1994
>The statistics, some have argued, show that the crime rate has been
>relatively stable over the past 20 years. Yet violent crime has been the
>number one public concern this election season. What, in actuality, do you
>perceive to be the root cause of this upsurge in fear? Is it really a
>factually verifiable increase in the incidence of violent crime, or is it
>something else? What can you, as a member of the United States Senate, do
>to address what you perceive to be the root cause of this fear? Why is it
>the responsibility of the federal government to concern itself with such
>issues?
Fear of crime is the number one concern due to the fact that the violent
crime rate has risen dramatically over the past three decades. In fact,
according to a 1991 Department of Justice study, on average a murder was
committed every 21 minutes, a rape every 5 minutes, a robbery every 46
seconds and an aggravated assault every 10 seconds in America.
To make matters worse, criminologists have determined that less than six
percent of these criminals commit 70 percent of crimes. According to crime
expert Edwin Zedlewaki, the average criminal can be expected to commit over
187 crimes per year. It is no wonder why fear of crime is at the top of the
list in this election year.
To alleviate these concerns, the federal, state, and local governments can
work together to ensure that these and other career criminals serve their
sentences, rather than being released early on to the streets. The federal
government can appropriate much-needed funds to states and localities for the
purpose of building more prisons to incarcerate more criminals.
The Congress can also reform our very flawed death penalty appeals process
to make capital punishment enforceable, adjust the exclusionary rule to
ensure certain evidence is admissible under the law, as well as provide more
police resources without strict mandates and hiring quotas.
Above all, the federal government can and should play a role in controlling
crime. However, lawmakers and bureaucrats must realize that 95% of crimes
are under the jurisdiction of state and localities, so Congress must not
hinder or take away responsibilities from our local police forces.
Unfortunately, the recently enacted federal crime bill did not recognize
this fact and made the taxpayers foot $30 billion for a bill which contained
numerous duplicative social welfare programs.
If elected, I will work with leaders of both parties to achieve real, common
sense criminal justice reform at little or no expense to the American
taxpayer.
Rod Grams
Candidate for U.S. Senate