Maria Cantwell: “I rise today to remind my colleagues that our consideration of H.R. 4092--the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement…”

“I rise today to remind my colleagues that our consideration of H.R. 4092--the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act--is a matter of life and death. A few weeks ago in Seattle, 16-year-old Melissa Fernandes was standing outside Ballard High School with a group of her friends, when two cars suddenly sped past and shots were fired. Melissa was killed, the innocent victim of a drive-by shooting by members of one gang trying to settle a score with their rivals. The gunman who allegedly shot Melissa Fernandes is 16 years old. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4092 will not prevent every senseless act of violence. Nothing we can do will accomplish that. But we must have the courage to take the steps we can, and this bill will help communities do two things better: prevent crime and punish criminals. We have seen too many of our children become the victims of violence. We must act now to stop the violence.”