Political Quotes

“one of America's greatest strengths is our judicial system: a system based on the ideal of equal justice for all. The Senate has a critical role to play in protecting this judicial system. Perhaps most importantly, it is our responsibility to confirm qualified judges to vacancies throughout the country so that our courts function at full strength and Americans receive swift and reliable justice. Another core responsibility is ensuring fairness. In criminal cases, fairness requires that the rights of victims and the accused are respected. It requires that evidence is processed quickly and accurately. And if there is a mistake and an innocent person is wrongly convicted, fairness requires that we have the tools available to correct them. The bill the Senate passes today, the Justice for All Reauthorization Act, will make our courts more fair. It provides tools to strengthen indigent defense and expand the rights of crime victims. It will improve the use of forensic evidence, including rape kits, to provide justice as swiftly as possible. It will help protect the innocent by increasing access to postconviction DNA testing. Passage of this bipartisan bill is long overdue, but it is an important step that we celebrate today. The Justice for All Reauthorization Act builds on the work I began in 2000, when I introduced the Innocence Protection Act.…”