Office of Speaker Dennis M. O’Brien
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
139 Main Capitol Building, Harrisburg
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Bill Patton
717-787-4610
Police protection bill approved by committee
HARRISBURG, Nov. 20 – The Law Enforcement Protection Act, sponsored by Speaker Dennis O’Brien to increase the punishment for those criminals who commit violence against police officers, was approved today by the House Judiciary Committee.
The bill creates two new offenses – homicide of a law enforcement officer and assault of a law enforcement officer – and imposes stiff mandatory penalties on offenders.
O’Brien’s bill (H.B. 2060) would mandate a 20-year minimum prison term for anyone convicted of first-degree felony assault of a law enforcement officer. This would apply to criminals who shoot at officers whether or not they harm the officer.
Conviction for first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer would result in either a death sentence or life in prison without parole.
“Police are the guardians of us all. We cannot tolerate criminals who target the men and women who are risking their lives to fight crime and keep us safe,” O’Brien said.
The measure is a tougher version of a bill O’Brien sponsored in 2006 that passed the House but did not get a vote in the Senate. O’Brien expects the full House to vote on the new bill in December.
“The members of the Judiciary Committee sent a strong message today that violence against police is unacceptable. Such assaults injure the very fabric of our society,” he said.
Governor Edward G. Rendell endorsed the measure in a news conference on Nov. 8, the day after Philadelphia Police Officer Chuck Cassidy was buried. The governor again spoke in favor of the bill at today’s meeting of the Judiciary Committee.
O’Brien noted the bill is part of a larger conversation he is organizing to find effective ways to prevent violent crime from happening in the first place.
“We need a systemic approach that includes education, community youth programs, drug and alcohol counseling, and reforms to the criminal justice system,” O’Brien said. “I have been meeting with experts on these topics to try to bring together a coalition of new strategies against violence.”