Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I have sought recognition to introduce legislation to make it a Federal offense to intimidate or threaten a witness in a State court proceeding. This legislation I believe to be necessary based upon some very disastrous experiences in the criminal courts in Philadelphia, as evidenced by a lengthy series of articles in the Philadelphia Inquirer and a field hearing which the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs held in Philadelphia. What has occurred is that in many instances, witnesses are intimidated--even murdered--to prevent them from testifying. The crime scenes in our big cities are atrocious. I spent eight years as the district attorney of Philadelphia. When I left that position, I didn't think the crime problem could be worse, but regrettably it is now, in many aspects. One of the aspects has been for the young thugs who are under accusation or friends of those who are under charge to go to the witnesses and terrify them and even murder them. During the course of the field hearing, we had two parents testify about how their children were brutally murdered. It is a violation of State law to intimidate a witness, but making it a Federal offense imports a great deal more pressure, more power to the situation. People do not like the Federal presence, the initiation of a criminal case, the investigation by the FBI, and the treatment of the Federal courts is materially different--at least in Philadelphia--than it is in the State court proceedings.…”