US Senate blocks DC criminal reform bill from going into effect News
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US Senate blocks DC criminal reform bill from going into effect

The US Senate Wednesday blocked a Washington DC criminal law reform bill. A joint resolution to disapprove of the bill passed the Senate in a vote of 81-14, with 33 Democrats and Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) joining all Senate Republicans.

During floor speeches before the vote, Democrats and Republicans debated the utility of the DC bill. Lawmakers like Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) came out strongly in opposition to blocking the bill. Booker emphasized the bill strengthens criminal penalties and creates new pathways for prosecution of certain offenses. He said that he has never seen “such a distortion of facts, such a misrepresentation of what something is” as he has with this bill.

On the other side of the debate, lawmakers such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said the DC bill softened criminal penalties amidst rising crime rates. McConnell said, “This is our capital city. But local politicians have let its streets become a danger and embarrassment.”

DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson attempted to preemptively remove the bill from the Senate floor Tuesday by withdrawing the bill. However, the attempt did not work. Following the vote, Mendelson said:

Data from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) shows that violent crime in DC decreased overall from 2021 to 2022. Total property crime rates decreased by 3 percent, and all crime rates decreased by a total of 4 percent.

The DC Council first passed the bill, which lowers maximum criminal penalties and eliminates minimum sentences on some crimes in DC, at the end of 2022. Shortly thereafter, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser vetoed the bill because she felt that it did not make DC any safer. The DC Council voted overwhelmingly to override Bowser’s veto in January, at which point it was taken up for consideration by Congress. Congress has the ability to oversee and overturn legislation from DC under the US Constitution, though it is rarely invoked.

The joint resolution now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk where, as he previously indicated, he is likely to sign it and officially block the DC crime bill from going into effect.

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