Panel OKs Bill To Allow Qualified, Retired Law Enforcement Officers
To Answer Call Of Duty
WASHINGTON (Thursday, May 17) – The Senate
Judiciary Committee Thursday reported a bipartisan bill that would
establish uniform standards so that
trained
and certified retired law enforcement officers could continue to answer
the call of duty.
The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of
2007 (S.376) revises existing laws to permit trained and certified
retired law enforcement officers
to carry
concealed firearms in most situations.
“The dedicated public servants who are
trained to uphold the law and keep the peace deserve our support and our
thanks,” said Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), chairman of the committee
and the chief sponsor of the bill. “We also act in our own interest
when we give law enforcement officers the ability to answer the call of
duty wherever they may be.”
“The men and women who have served as
peace officers are a tremendous resource in all of our communities,”
Leahy added.
The bill enjoys support from a broad
coalition in the Senate. It is cosponsored by Senator Arlen Specter
(R-Pa.), ranking member of the committee, and Senators Max Baucus
(D-Mont.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Kent Conrad (D-N.D.),
Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), and Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.).
The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of
2007 was passed by voice vote and updates a previous law that was passed
in 2004 after being cosponsored by 70 senators.
Below is Chairman
Leahy’s statement from the meeting followed by a summary of the bill.
Statement of Senator
Patrick Leahy,
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee
On the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2007, S.376
Executive Business Meeting
May 17, 2007
This morning the Judiciary Committee has
another opportunity to consider a bill of interest to many of our law
enforcement officers across the country, the Law Enforcement Officers
Safety Act of 2007, S.376. Without the cooperation of Members we did
not have a quorum last week and were unable to proceed. I hope we do
better today.
With the enactment of the Law Enforcement
Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) in 2004, Congress and the President
recognized that law enforcement officers are never “off-duty.” Under
this law, qualified retired officers seeking certification to carry a
firearm have been subject to varying procedures from State to State.
Differing interpretations have complicated the implementation of the
law, and some retired officers have experienced significant frustration
in getting certified under LEOSA.
With the input of the law enforcement
community, this bill proposes modest amendments to the current law. For
example, where a State has not set active duty standards, the retired
officer can be certified pursuant to the active duty standards set by
law enforcement agencies in the State. In addition, the bill clarifies
that Amtrak police officers, along with officers of the Executive branch
of the Federal Government, are covered by the law. The bill also resets
at 10, the number of years of service required for a retired officer to
qualify under the law, and removes the requirement that an officer be
entitled to non-forfeitable benefits, which some smaller law enforcement
agencies do not provide. The requirements for eligibility still involve
a significant term of service for a retired officer to qualify, a
demonstrated commitment to law enforcement, and certification.
In order to qualify under the law, all
officers seeking certification to carry a firearm must have retired in
“good standing.” With respect to the changes allowing a certified
firearms instructor to conduct testing, the testing still must be
pursuant to active duty standards, and conducted by a firearms
instructor certified by the state to test active duty officers.
The dedicated public servants who are
trained to uphold the law and keep the peace deserve our support and our
thanks. We also act in our own interest when we give law enforcement
officers the ability to answer the call of duty wherever they may be.
For example, just recently in a tragic shooting spree that killed five
people in a shopping mall in Utah, an off-duty officer, Ken Hammond,
likely saved lives when he confronted a killer who was heavily armed and
engaged him until other officers arrived. He could have just as easily
been a retired officer as an off-duty officer.
The men and women who have served as peace
officers are a tremendous resource in all of our communities. Earlier
this week, I was honored to participate in the 26th Annual
National Peace Officers Memorial ceremonies here at the Capitol hosted
by
The Grand Lodge of the Fraternal Order of
Police and its auxiliary. As we do each year, we gathered with the
families of those who lost a loved one in 2006 in the line of duty and
commemorated their sacrifice to keep us safe and secure. This week, we
honored them and the dedication and courage of the more than 900,000 men
and women who put themselves on the line to protect all of us.
The technical fixes
in this bill will continue our aim of establishing national measures of
uniformity and consistency to permit trained and certified retired law
enforcement officers to carry concealed firearms in most situations so
that they may protect themselves and their families from vindictive
criminals, and, when extraordinary circumstances occur, respond to the
call of duty wherever they may be.
I look forward to the
Committee approving this bill today to make our communities safer and
better to protect law enforcement officers and their families.
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