Rod Grams: “by the very nature of its name, the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1994 implies that this Congress is taking significant…”

“by the very nature of its name, the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1994 implies that this Congress is taking significant steps to reduce the rate of crime in this country and deal swiftly and effectively with criminals. Guess again. Take the habeas corpus revisions, for instance. The revisions contained in H.R. 4092 liberalize the habeas corpus appeal process, effectively undermining the death penalties in the 36 States that have capital punishment. It relaxes rules on when a defendant can appeal, reverses several Supreme Court cases that prohibit most appeals based on changes in the law after the defendant's conviction; thus allowing new appeals every time the Supreme Court makes a new procedural ruling; and requires that at least two lawyers be appointed to represent the defendant at every stage of the process. These revisions will prolong, rather than curtail, the lengthy appeals process. Serious crime reform means getting tough on never-ending habeas corpus appeals, not creating loopholes that handcuff our already overburdened criminal justice system and keep crime weary citizens wondering what the heck we are doing here in Washington.”