U.S. Senator Ken Salazar

Member: Finance, Agriculture, Energy, Ethics and Aging Committees

 

2300 15th Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO 80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C. 20510

 

 

For Immediate Release

January 31, 2007

CONTACT:    Cody Wertz – Comm. Director
303-455-5999
Drew Nannis – Press Secretary
202-224-5852


  Sen. Salazar Joins Bipartisan Coalition to Introduce Gang Violence Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. – United States Senator Ken Salazar and a bipartisan coalition of 13 U.S. Senators today introduced the Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007, legislation that will fight gang violence and establish tougher federal penalties to deter and punish members of street gangs.

“It is past time for Congress to take action on the growing menace posed by criminal gangs,” Senator Salazar said. “Recently, gangs, gang member numbers and gang-related activity have all increased in Colorado and across the nation. This strong, bipartisan bill ensures stronger penalties for those who commit gang-related offenses, increases funding for investigation, prosecution and training of law enforcement officials and invests in the programs essential to preventing our youth from joining gangs. This is a sensible approach and deserves quick action.”

In Colorado alone, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) recently reported that there are approximately 12,470 confirmed gang members affiliated with 110 individual street gangs. Nationwide, the U.S. Department of Justice reported more than 731,000 gang members and 21,500 gangs.

Over a 5-year period, the comprehensive gang legislation will provide more than $1 billion to:

  • Implement new criminal laws and tougher penalties for those who commit gang-related offenses;
  • Authorize additional funding for investigations, prosecutions and witness protection programs; and
  • Provide funding for local community programs to deter young people from joining gangs.

The legislation has also been endorsed by the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO), an organization representing 238,000 police officers from across the country.

The bipartisan coalition includes Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Arlen Specter (R-PA), John Cornyn (R-TX.), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Ted Stevens (R-AK), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Joseph Biden (D-DE), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Max Baucus (D-MT) and Mark Pryor (D-AR).

As Colorado Attorney General, Senator Salazar frequently worked with the law enforcement community to prosecute gang-related crimes and reduce gang numbers in Colorado. He created the first-ever Attorney General Gang Prosecution Unit to target gang members who recruit youth from our communities and successfully pushed through a state law making it a felony for an adult to recruit a minor into a gang.

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