Marco Rubio on Crime Republican Florida Senator

Black Lives Matter is a legitimate issue

"Look, I personally know people who are African American males--I have one friend who's been stopped in the last 18 months 8 or 9 different times," he continued. "Never got a ticket for being stopped--just stopped. If that happened to me, after 8 or 9 times, I'd be wondering what's going on here. I'd be upset about it. So would anybody else."

"Some of this doesn't have government solutions, but it is something we need to confront," he added. "Because you have a significant percentage of our population that feels that they are locked out of the promise of this country [because of a criminal justice record]--it is particularly troubling among young African-American males"

False choice between rampant crime vs. overstretched prisons

Congress can begin the project of restoring a criminal justice system that both protects public safety and reflects our values as a free people.

We do not have to choose between the rampant criminality of the 1970s and 1980s and the overreaching criminal laws and overstretched prison resources we have today. Working together, those of us in government along with partners in civil society can work to restore an America characterized by liberty and law.

2000: Established West Miami's 1st bicycle patrol officers

25 years ago, sister's husband made many mistakes

But the story generated almost no buzz. The mainstream media mostly ignored it, and in the few placed where it was mentioned it was usually derided.

Toughen laws against prostitution & sex trafficking

State government synopsis: Increases penalties for procuring minor for prostitution; revises provisions re sex trafficking; revises provisions prohibiting deriving support or maintenance from earnings of prostitution; provides for payments to persons who provide information that materially assists law enforcement in investigation of specified violations leading to felony convictions or withholdings of adjudication.

Collect DNA of those convicted of sexually deviant behavior

Life Without Exception for Sexual Predators
• Expand the dangerous sexual felony offender law
• Expand DNA collection by 2012 to include all those convicted of felony offenses and those who have exhibited a propensity for sexually deviant behavior through commission of specified misdemeanor offenses
• Enact laws to deny registered sex offenders and stalkers access to popular Internet networking sites
• Increase the risk and penalties for those engaged in the business of promoting sex crimes
• Afford whistleblower status to everyone who reports sex crimes, even if they were involved in the act
• Increase funding for additional law enforcement resources to combat gang activities
• Increase the numbers of specialized prosecutors & gang-related law enforcement officers, and establish training programs for them to develop better methods to combat gang and hate group activity
• Curb Endless Appeals by Convicted Felons
• Limit the time convicted felons have to appeal their sentences

Mandatory life sentence for repeat sex offenders

[We should] toughen prison sentences to keep Florida's children safe from sexual predators, and expand DNA collection to include all felony offenses and sexually deviant misdemeanors. Florida should expand the dangerous sexual felony offender law to that all second-time sex offenders are subject to a minimum 20-year sentence. The act will also provide a mandatory life sentence for all third-time offenders. It will also allow misdemeanor sex offenses to be enhanced to felonies and apply the enhanced penalties to those crimes

Endless death row appeals hinder justice

Solution: Streamline the appeals process in criminal cases. Florida should create a new, more efficient, less expensive process for reviewing criminal cases that instills more public confidence in the criminal justice system. This could be accomplished by limiting the time convicted felons have to appeal their sentences.

Death penalty for killing police officers.

Congressional Summary: Makes the killing or attempted killing of a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or other first responder an aggravating factor in death penalty determinations [when] the defendant killed or attempted to kill a person who is authorized by law:

• to engage in or supervise the prevention, detention, investigation, or prosecution, or the incarceration of any person for any criminal violation of law;
• to apprehend, arrest, or prosecute an individual for any criminal violation of law; or
• to be a firefighter or other first responder.
• And that the person was killed--
• while he or she was engaged in the performance of his or her official duties;
• because of the performance of his or her official duties; or
• because of his or her status as a public official or employee.

Opposing argument: [Sen. Bernie Sanders, Oct. 13, 2015]: `Black lives matter. The African American community knows that on any given day some innocent person like Sandra Bland can get into a car, and three days later she`s dead in jail. We need to combat institutional racism from top to bottom, and we need major reforms in a broken criminal justice system. I intend to make sure people have education and jobs rather than jail cells.`

Opposing argument: [ACLU of Louisiana, July 7, 2015]: Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a bill into law that makes targeting a police officer a hate crime. Passage of such bills is a top priority for a national organization called Blue Lives Matter, which was formed in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. [A video captured] `police killing a black man who was minding his own business,` says the director of ACLU-LA. But it was the civil rights of police officers that Edwards was concerned about, as if theirs were being routinely violated: `I`m not aware of any evidence that police officers have been victimized that would justify giving them special protection.`

Don't compromise community safety with sentencing reform.

Congressional Summary:

• TITLE I--RECIDIVISM REDUCTION: establish a risk and needs assessment system to evaluate the recidivism risk of prisoners; to guide housing assignments; and to reward participation in recidivism reduction programs.
• TITLE II--BUREAU OF PRISONS SECURE FIREARMS STORAGE: allow federal correctional officers to securely store and carry concealed firearms on BOP premises outside the security perimeter of a prison.
• TITLE III--RESTRAINTS ON PREGNANT PRISONERS PROHIBITED: limits the use of restraints on federal prisoners who are pregnant or in postpartum recovery.
• TITLE IV--SENTENCING REFORM: reduces the enhanced mandatory minimum prison terms for certain repeat drug offenses.

Opposing press release from Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA-1):: The reform sentencing laws in this bill may compromise the safety of our communities. Criminals convicted of violent crimes would have the opportunity to achieve `low risk` status and become eligible for early release. California already has similar laws in place--Propositions 47 and 57--which have hamstrung law enforcement and caused a significant uptick in crime.

Supporting press release from Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-10):: S. 756 establishes a new system to reduce the risk that [federal prisoners] will commit crimes once they are released. Critically, S. 756 would not only implement these reforms to our prison system, but it also takes a crucial first step toward addressing grave concerns about our sentencing laws, which have for years fed a national crisis of mass incarceration. The bill is a `first step` that demonstrates that we can work together to make the system fairer in ways that will also reduce crime and victimization.

Legislative outcome: Concurrence Passed Senate, 87-12-1, on Dec. 18, 2018; Concurrence Passed House 358-36-28, Dec. 20, 2018; President Trump signed, Dec. 21, 2018

Rated 45% by the NAPO, indicating a police-the-police stance.

Ratings by the National Association of Police Organizations indicate support or opposition to issues of importance to police and crime. The organization`s self-description: `The National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO) is a coalition of police units and associations from across the United States. NAPO was organized for the purpose of advancing the interests of America`s law enforcement officers through legislative advocacy, political action, and education.

`Increasingly, the rights and interests of law enforcement officers have been the subject of legislative, executive, and judicial action in the nation’s capital. NAPO works to influence the course of national affairs where law enforcement interests are concerned. The following list includes examples of NAPO’s accomplishments:

• Enactment of the Fair Sentencing Act
• Enactment of the National AMBER Alert Act
• Enactment of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act
• Enactment of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
• Enactment of the Law Enforcement Officers` Safety Act (Right to Carry Legislation)

VoteMatch scoring for the NAPO ratings is as follows:

• 0%-50%: soft on crime and police issues;
• 50%-75%: mixed record on crime and police issues;
• 75%-100%: tough on crime and police issues.