On Thursday, the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime held a hearing on pro-gun U.S. Representative Bill McCollum's (R-Fla.) H.R. 4051, the "Project Exile: The Safe Streets and Neighborhoods Act of 2000" (see FAX Alert Vol. 7, No. 12). Virginia Governor James Gilmore (R) and Virginia Attorney General Mark Earley (R) each spoke in support of H.R. 4051, highlighting the tremendous success the Old Dominion has had with simply enforcing the laws against armed criminals. (Webmaster Note: Virginia Exile Program) Richmond, Va., of course, is the birthplace of the "Project Exile" prosecution model. Michael T. McCaul, Special Assistant to the Attorney General of Texas, spoke of Texas Exile, the statewide program from the Lone Star State that also focuses on prosecuting felons caught with firearms. And two former U.S. Attorneys, Kenneth W. Sukhia and George J. Terwilliger III, presented information about "Project Triggerlock," a federal program started during the Bush Administration similar to the "Project Exile" prosecution model that was abandoned by the Clinton-Gore Administration. U.S. Representative Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. (R-Md.), who is not a member of the subcommittee, assisted with the hearings by testifying about his attempts to get a Project Exile-type program operating in Maryland, and by questioning witnesses.
But the most moving testimony in support of this legislation came from Rick Castaldo, whose son Richard was paralyzed from the chest down after having been shot eight times during last year's tragedy at Columbine High. Mr. Castaldo stated that he "does not blame the guns," and that he finds Bill Clinton's claims that more gun laws would make children safe to be "personally offensive." Rather than pass more laws that will be ignored by criminals, Castaldo feels that America needs to look into, as his son says, "What causes kids to do something like this [Columbine]?" One answer to the problem of violent crime, he feels, is to send a message to criminals through "swift and tough prosecution of laws that we already have in this country." Also testifying before the subcommittee was Mary Leigh Blek, president of the anti-gun organization, The Bell Campaign, who claimed that encouraging the prosecution of felons caught possessing firearms "will do little to prevent gun deaths and injuries." And M. Kristen Rand of the anti-gun Violence Policy Center (VPC) used part of her time testifying to simply attack NRA, the most vocal and ardent proponent of the "Project Exile" prosecution model. The VPC, you might recall, also engaged in a virulent attack on the NRA's Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program -- an effort that was thoroughly lambasted, even by media sources that are anti-gun. Please contact your U.S. Representative at (202) 225-3121 and urge him to support H.R. 4051.
=+=+=+=+ | ||||||||||||||||
