Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act in plain language
1: Short title
This section would let the Act be called the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act.
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act .
2: District attorney reporting requirements for Byrne grants
This section would add a new reporting requirement to the part of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 that governs Byrne grants (34 U.S.C. 10151). It would renumber that law's existing subsections (g) and (h) as (h) and (i) to make room, and insert a new subsection (g) with the requirement described below. Each year, the chief executive of a district attorney's or prosecutor's office that serves a jurisdiction of 380,000 or more people would have to submit a report to the Attorney General, if that jurisdiction receives funds under this part of the law, covering the previous fiscal year. The report would have to include: the total number of cases referred to the office for prosecution of a covered offense; the number of cases involving a covered offense that the office declined to prosecute; for cases involving a covered offense that ended in a plea agreement with the defendant, the total number of such cases, the number broken down by each initial charge, and the number broken down by each charge of conviction; the number of cases involving covered offenses brought against a defendant, broken down separately into the number of such cases where the defendant was previously arrested for a covered offense arising from separate conduct, the number where the defendant was previously convicted for a covered offense arising from separate conduct, the number where the defendant had an open case involving a covered offense arising from separate conduct, the number where the defendant was serving a term of probation for a covered-offense conviction arising from separate conduct, and the number where the defendant was released on parole for a covered-offense conviction arising from separate conduct; and the number of defendants charged with a covered offense, broken down separately by how many were released on their own recognizance, how many were eligible for bail, and how many had bail requested by the prosecutor. The Attorney General would have to define uniform standards for how this information is reported, including the format of the reports and the process for sharing them with the Attorney General. The Attorney General would then have to submit the information received to the Judiciary Committee of the Senate and the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives, and publish the information on a publicly viewable website. For purposes of this new subsection, a covered offense would mean any of the following: murder or non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson, any offense involving the illegal use of a firearm, or any offense involving the illegal possession of a firearm.
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2. District attorney reporting requirements for Byrne grants Section 501 of subpart 1 of part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 34 U.S.C. 10151 ) is amended— (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (h) and (i), respectively; and (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the following: (g) District Attorney Reporting Requirements (1) In general On an annual basis, each chief executive of a district attorney or prosecutor’s office that serves a jurisdiction of 380,000 or more persons, which jurisdiction receives funds under this part, shall submit to the Attorney General a report that contains, for the previous fiscal year, the following: (A) The total number of cases referred to the office for prosecution of a covered offense. (B) The number of cases such office declined to prosecute involving a covered offense. (C) For cases involving a covered offense that resulted in a plea agreement reached with the defendant— (i) the total number of such cases; (ii) the number of such cases by each initial charge; and (iii) the number of such cases by each charge of conviction. (D) The number of cases involving covered offenses initiated against a defendant— (i) previously arrested for a covered offense arising out of separate conduct; (ii) previously convicted for a covered offense arising out of separate conduct; (iii) with an open case involving a covered offense arising out of separate conduct; (iv) serving a term of probation for a conviction for a covered offense arising out of separate conduct; and (v) released on parole for a conviction for a covered offense arising out of separate conduct. (E) The number of defendants charged with a covered offense— (i) who were released on their own recognizance; (ii) who were eligible for bail; and (iii) for whom the prosecutor requested bail. (2) Uniform standards The Attorney General shall define uniform standards for the reporting of the information required under this subsection, including the form such reports shall take and the process by which such reports shall be shared with the Attorney General. (3) Submission to Judiciary Committees The Attorney General shall submit the information received under this subsection to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and shall publish such information on a publicly viewable website. (4) Covered offense defined In this subsection, the term covered offense means any of the following: (A) Murder or non-negligent manslaughter. (B) Forcible rape. (C) Robbery. (D) Aggravated assault. (E) Burglary. (F) Larceny. (G) Motor vehicle theft. (H) Arson. (I) Any offense involving the illegal use of a firearm. (J) Any offense involving the illegal possession of a firearm. .