Leahy: Washington Must Match
Words With Deeds
In Honoring Fallen Peace Officers

WASHINGTON (Thur., May 15) -- President Bush and congressional leaders, including Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Thursday honored the 152 law enforcement officers killed in 2002 during National Peace Officers Memorial Day ceremonies at the U.S. Capitol. Thousands of law enforcement officials from throughout the country and Vermont, their families, the families of those officers slain and other dignitaries attended the ceremony.

Leahy, long a leading advocate for the nation’s police officers, said the President and Congress now need to match today’s words with deeds, by acting on several issues important to the law enforcement community that have stalled on the legislative agenda.

“Today we have paused to honor the heroes of September 11 and of every other day when police officers have fallen in the line of duty,” said Leahy.  “Now we have to match our words with deeds. We have been asking more from them but giving them too little of our help in return.  There is more we can and should do to equip our first responders.  There is more we need to do for their safety.  And there is more we need to do to fill the gaps in the relief we offer to the survivors of the fallen.”

Wednesday night Leahy was honored by the International Brotherhood of Police Officers as their Legislator of the Year.  Leahy was singled out for several of his law enforcement-related initiatives, including the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Act, the AMBER Alert package that was signed into law last month, and his Hometown Heroes Survivors Benefits bill. 

The Vermont senator is the ranking Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees federal law enforcement agencies and programs.  Leahy’s Bulletproof Vest Partnership program, enacted  in 1998, by now has brought more than $250,000 in federal funds to help Vermont’s local and state police purchase 979 bulletproof vests.  Leahy now is pushing to reauthorize the highly successful program, which could mean another 1,000 vests for Vermont police officers by 2007.  Since the introduction of modern bulletproof material, 2,700 officers nationwide have been saved by bulletproof vests.

Leahy also authored the Hometown Heroes bill to improve the Justice Department’s Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program (PSOB), by allowing families of public safety officers who suffer fatal heart attacks or strokes to qualify for federal survivor benefits. 

In the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, Leahy improved the PSOB Program by streamlining the process for families of first responders killed or injured in connection with prevention, investigation, rescue or recovery efforts related to terrorist attacks.  Vermont’s police officers and first responders have also benefited from an all-state minimum Leahy included in the 2001 USA PATRIOT Act that has brought Vermont more than $15 million this year alone to prepare them for the new threats posed by terrorism.

Leahy has been advocating for an increase in funding for all first responders to help them become better prepared.  In February he introduced The First Responders Partnership Grant Act (S.315) to charter a new $4 billion Justice Department grant program to support first responders in their efforts to protect homeland security and prevent and respond to acts of terrorism. 

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