I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3079 To protect law enforcement officers, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 5, 2023 Mr. BACON (for himself, Mr. LAMALFA, Mr. CARL, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mr. LATTA, Mr. BARR, Mr. AMODEI, Ms. STEFANIK, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. JOHN- SON of Ohio, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. MEUSER, Mr. JACKSON of Texas, Mr. D’ESPOSITO, Mr. LAWLER, Mr. LALOTA, and Mr. HUDSON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To protect law enforcement officers, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Back the Blue Act 4 of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS. 6 (a) KILLING OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS.— 7 (1) OFFENSE.—Chapter 51 of title 18, United 8 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 9 following: 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 3079 IH ‘‘§ 1123. Killing of law enforcement officers 1 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 2 ‘‘(1) the terms ‘Federal law enforcement officer’ 3 and ‘United States judge’ have the meanings given 4 those terms in section 115; 5 ‘‘(2) the term ‘federally funded public safety of- 6 ficer’ means a public safety officer or judicial officer 7 for a public agency that— 8 ‘‘(A) receives Federal financial assistance; 9 and 10 ‘‘(B) is an agency of an entity that is a 11 State of the United States, the District of Co- 12 lumbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 13 Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the 14 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is- 15 lands, or any territory or possession of the 16 United States, an Indian tribe, or a unit of 17 local government of that entity; 18 ‘‘(3) the term ‘firefighter’ includes an individual 19 serving as an official recognized or designated mem- 20 ber of a legally organized volunteer fire department 21 and an officially recognized or designated public em- 22 ployee member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew; 23 ‘‘(4) the term ‘judicial officer’ means a judge or 24 other officer or employee of a court, including pros- 25 ecutors, court security, pretrial services officers, 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 3079 IH court reporters, and corrections, probation, and pa- 1 role officers; 2 ‘‘(5) the term ‘law enforcement officer’ means 3 an individual, with statutory arrest powers, involved 4 in crime or juvenile delinquency control or reduction 5 or enforcement of the laws; 6 ‘‘(6) the term ‘public agency’ includes a court 7 system, the National Guard of a State to the extent 8 the personnel of that National Guard are not in 9 Federal service, and the defense forces of a State 10 authorized by section 109 of title 32; and 11 ‘‘(7) the term ‘public safety officer’ means an 12 individual serving a public agency in an official ca- 13 pacity, as a law enforcement officer, as a firefighter, 14 as a chaplain, or as a member of a rescue squad or 15 ambulance crew. 16 ‘‘(b) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for any person 17 to— 18 ‘‘(1) commit, or attempt to or conspire to com- 19 mit, murder (within the meaning of section 1111(a)) 20 or manslaughter (within the meaning of section 21 1112(a)) against— 22 ‘‘(A) a United States judge; 23 ‘‘(B) a Federal law enforcement officer; or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 3079 IH ‘‘(C) a federally funded public safety offi- 1 cer while that officer is engaged in official du- 2 ties, or on account of the performance of offi- 3 cial duties; or 4 ‘‘(2) commit, or attempt to or conspire to com- 5 mit, murder (within the meaning of section 1111(a)) 6 or manslaughter (within the meaning of section 7 1112(a)) against a former United States judge, Fed- 8 eral law enforcement officer, or federally funded 9 public safety officer on account of the past perform- 10 ance of official duties. 11 ‘‘(c) PENALTY.—Any person that violates subsection 12 (b) shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not 13 less than 10 years or for life, or, if death results, shall 14 be sentenced to not less than 30 years and not more than 15 life, or may be punished by death.’’. 16 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 17 for chapter 51 of title 18, United States Code, is 18 amended by adding at the end the following: 19 ‘‘1123. Killing of law enforcement officers.’’. (b) ASSAULT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS.— 20 (1) OFFENSE.—Chapter 7 of title 18, United 21 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 22 following: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 3079 IH ‘‘§ 120. Assaults of law enforcement officers 1 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘feder- 2 ally funded State or local law enforcement officer’ means 3 an individual involved in crime and juvenile delinquency 4 control or reduction, or enforcement of the laws (including 5 a police, corrections, probation, or parole officer) who 6 works for a public agency (that receives Federal financial 7 assistance) of a State of the United States or the District 8 of Columbia. 9 ‘‘(b) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful to assault a fed- 10 erally funded State or local law enforcement officer while 11 engaged in or on account of the performance of official 12 duties, or assaults any person who formerly served as a 13 federally funded State or local law enforcement officer on 14 account of the performance of such person’s official duties 15 during such service, or because of the actual or perceived 16 status of the person as a federally funded State or local 17 law enforcement officer. 18 ‘‘(c) PENALTY.—Any person that violates subsection 19 (b) shall be subject to a fine under this title and— 20 ‘‘(1) if the assault resulted in bodily injury (as 21 defined in section 1365), shall be imprisoned not less 22 than 2 years and not more than 10 years; 23 ‘‘(2) if the assault resulted in substantial bodily 24 injury (as defined in section 113), shall be impris- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 3079 IH oned not less than 5 years and not more than 20 1 years; 2 ‘‘(3) if the assault resulted in serious bodily in- 3 jury (as defined in section 1365), shall be impris- 4 oned for not less than 10 years; 5 ‘‘(4) if a deadly or dangerous weapon was used 6 during and in relation to the assault, shall be im- 7 prisoned for not less than 20 years; and 8 ‘‘(5) shall be imprisoned for not more than 1 9 year in any other case. 10 ‘‘(d) CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.— 11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No prosecution of any of- 12 fense described in this section may be undertaken by 13 the United States, except under the certification in 14 writing of the Attorney General, or a designee, 15 that— 16 ‘‘(A) the State does not have jurisdiction; 17 ‘‘(B) the State has requested that the Fed- 18 eral Government assume jurisdiction; 19 ‘‘(C) the verdict or sentence obtained pur- 20 suant to State charges left demonstratively 21 unvindicated the Federal interest in eradicating 22 bias-motivated violence; or 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 3079 IH ‘‘(D) a prosecution by the United States is 1 in the public interest and necessary to secure 2 substantial justice. 3 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 4 this subsection shall be construed to limit the au- 5 thority of Federal officers, or a Federal grand jury, 6 to investigate possible violations of this section. 7 ‘‘(e) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.— 8 ‘‘(1) OFFENSES NOT RESULTING IN DEATH.— 9 Except as provided in paragraph (2), no person shall 10 be prosecuted, tried, or punished for any offense 11 under this section unless the indictment for such of- 12 fense is found, or the information for such offense 13 is instituted, not later than 7 years after the date 14 on which the offense was committed. 15 ‘‘(2) OFFENSES RESULTING IN DEATH.—An in- 16 dictment or information alleging that an offense 17 under this section resulted in death may be found or 18 instituted at any time without limitation.’’. 19 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 20 for chapter 7 of title 18, United States Code, is 21 amended by adding at the end the following: 22 ‘‘120. Assualts of law enforcement officers.’’. (c) FLIGHT TO AVOID PROSECUTION FOR KILLING 23 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 3079 IH (1) OFFENSE.—Chapter 49 of title 18, United 1 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 2 following: 3 ‘‘§ 1075. Flight to avoid prosecution for killing law 4 enforcement officials 5 ‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for any person 6 to move or travel in interstate or foreign commerce with 7 intent to avoid prosecution, or custody or confinement 8 after conviction, under the laws of the place from which 9 the person flees or under section 1114 or 1123, for a crime 10 consisting of the killing, an attempted killing, or a con- 11 spiracy to kill a Federal judge or Federal law enforcement 12 officer (as those terms are defined in section 115), or a 13 federally funded public safety officer (as that term is de- 14 fined in section 1123). 15 ‘‘(b) PENALTY.—Any person that violates subsection 16 (a) shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not 17 less than 10 years, in addition to any other term of impris- 18 onment for any other offense relating to the conduct de- 19 scribed in subsection (a).’’. 20 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 21 for chapter 49 of title 18, United States Code, is 22 amended by adding at the end the following: 23 ‘‘1075. Flight to avoid prosecution for killing law enforcement officials.’’. VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 3079 IH SEC. 3. SPECIFIC AGGRAVATING FACTOR FOR FEDERAL 1 DEATH PENALTY KILLING OF LAW ENFORCE- 2 MENT OFFICER. 3 (a) AGGRAVATING FACTORS FOR HOMICIDE.—Sec- 4 tion 3592(c) of title 18, United States Code, is amended 5 by inserting after paragraph (16) the following: 6 ‘‘(17) KILLING OF A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI- 7 CER, PROSECUTOR, JUDGE, OR FIRST RESPONDER.— 8 The defendant killed or attempted to kill a person 9 who is authorized by law— 10 ‘‘(A) to engage in or supervise the preven- 11 tion, detention, or investigation of any criminal 12 violation of law; 13 ‘‘(B) to arrest, prosecute, or adjudicate an 14 individual for any criminal violation of law; or 15 ‘‘(C) to be a firefighter or other first re- 16 sponder.’’. 17 SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON FEDERAL HABEAS RELIEF FOR 18 MURDERS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS. 19 (a) JUSTICE FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS 20 AND THEIR FAMILIES.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2254 of title 28, 22 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 23 end the following: 24 ‘‘(j)(1) For an application for a writ of habeas corpus 25 on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 3079 IH of a State court for a crime that involved the killing of 1 a public safety officer (as that term is defined in section 2 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 3 Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b)) or judge, while 4 the public safety officer or judge was engaged in the per- 5 formance of official duties, or on account of the perform- 6 ance of official duties by or status as a public safety officer 7 or judge of the public safety officer or judge— 8 ‘‘(A) the application shall be subject to the time 9 limitations and other requirements under sections 10 2263, 2264, and 2266; and 11 ‘‘(B) the court shall not consider claims relating 12 to sentencing that were adjudicated in a State court. 13 ‘‘(2) Sections 2251, 2262, and 2101 are the exclusive 14 sources of authority for Federal courts to stay a sentence 15 of death entered by a State court in a case described in 16 paragraph (1).’’. 17 (2) RULES.—Rule 11 of the Rules Governing 18 Section 2254 Cases in the United States District 19 Courts is amended by adding at the end the fol- 20 lowing: ‘‘Rule 60(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil 21 Procedure shall not apply to a proceeding under 22 these rules in a case that is described in section 23 2254(j) of title 28, United States Code.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 3079 IH (3) FINALITY OF DETERMINATION.—Section 1 2244(b)(3)(E) of title 28, United States Code, is 2 amended by striking ‘‘the subject of a petition’’ and 3 all that follows and inserting: ‘‘reheard in the court 4 of appeals or reviewed by writ of certiorari.’’. 5 (4) EFFECTIVE DATE AND APPLICABILITY.— 6 (A) IN GENERAL.—This paragraph and the 7 amendments made by this paragraph shall 8 apply to any case pending on or after the date 9 of enactment of this Act. 10 (B) TIME LIMITS.—In a case pending on 11 the date of enactment of this Act, if the amend- 12 ments made by this paragraph impose a time 13 limit for taking certain action, the period of 14 which began before the date of enactment of 15 this Act, the period of such time limit shall 16 begin on the date of enactment of this Act. 17 (C) EXCEPTION.—The amendments made 18 by this paragraph shall not bar consideration 19 under section 2266(b)(3)(B) of title 28, United 20 States Code, of an amendment to an application 21 for a writ of habeas corpus that is pending on 22 the date of enactment of this Act, if the amend- 23 ment to the petition was adjudicated by the 24 court prior to the date of enactment of this Act. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 May 17, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3079.IH H3079 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 3079 IH SEC. 5. SELF-DEFENSE RIGHTS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT 1 OFFICERS. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 203 of title 18, United 3 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 3053 4 the [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]