On the recordApril 14, 2011
The Victims of Crimes Act, or VOCA, as it's called, is a wonderful idea that requires convicted criminals to pay into a fund that is used by crime victims. It is the idea that criminals pay for the system they have created. They pay rent on the courthouse, so to speak, by putting money in a fund that goes to these victims. This VOCA fund is about $6 billion. This is not taxpayer money. It is money that belongs to victims. But Federal bureaucrats seem to want to rob this fund and pay for other Federal programs. We cannot allow this money to be taken from victims of violent crime. This money should be placed in a lockbox so it is only used by crime victims and victim services. During this National Crime Victims Week, our Nation must constantly be sensitive to the needs of people who have been robbed, assaulted, and harmed by criminals. We as a nation are judged not by the way we treat the rich, the powerful, and the famous, but by the way we treat the innocent, the children, the elderly, and victims of crime. And that's just the way it is. ____________________
