Congressional Research Service Reports - 21 Matching Results
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- SORNA: A Legal Analysis of 18 U.S.C. §2250 (Failure to Register as a Sex Offender
- This report describes the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) including various elements of the legislation and Constitutional considerations, with requirements and repercussions of an individual's failure to comply with SORNA.
- U.S.-Mexican Security Cooperation: The Mérida Initiative and Beyond
- This report begins with a brief discussion of security challenges in Mexico and Mexico's security strategy. It then provides information on congressional funding and oversight of the Mérida Initiative, with details about each of the program's four pillars. The report concludes by raising policy issues that Congress may wish to consider.
- Gun Control, Mental Incompetency, and Social Security Administration Final Rule
- This report discusses the Congressional Review Act disapproval resolution (H.J.Res. 40) intended to overturn a final rule promulgated by the Social Security Administration (SSA) regarding implementation of firearms restrictions for certain persons.
- Qualified Immunity for a Police Shooting
- This report discusses the rule of qualified immunity for police officers, which prevents officers from being sued for actions taken in the course of their job unless there was a clear decision by the officer to break the law or incompetence. It specifically discusses the case of "White v. Pauly" heard by the Supreme Court, which upheld qualified immunity for Officer White after he was accused of violating a suspect's fourth amendment rights by use of excessive force to seize the suspect who had been fatally shot during the incident.
- Gun Control, Mental Incompetency, and Social Security Administration Final Rule
- This report discusses the Congressional Review Act disapproval resolution (H.J.Res. 40) passed by the House of Representative to overturn a final rule promulgated by the Social Security Administration (SSA) regarding implementation of firearms restrictions for certain persons.
- Gun Control, Mental Incompetency, and Social Security Administration Final Rule
- This report discusses the Congressional Review Act disapproval resolution (H.J.Res. 40) passed by the House of Representative to overturn a final rule promulgated by the Social Security Administration (SSA) regarding implementation of firearms restrictions for certain persons.
- Gun Control: FY2017 Appropriations for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Other Initiatives
- This report provides coverage of congressional action on President Barack Obama's FY2017 budget request for his gun safety initiative. This coverage includes analysis of the ATF Congressional Budget Submission, including discussion of selected data trends that could affect ATF workloads during FY2017.
- Six Justice Court to Decide Liability of Officials for Post 9/11 Detention
- This report discusses a Supreme Court case regarding whether men detained after 9/11 by federal authorities can sue the individual officials involved in their arrest and detainment that was due to be heard by a six justice court due to the death of Justice Scalia and the recusements of two other justices.
- Fiscal Year 2017 Appropriations for the Department of Justice
- This report provides a an overview of the 2017 fiscal year appropriations for the Department of Justice (DOJ) divided by department. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (P.L. 115-31) appropriates $28.962 billion for DOJ, an amount that is 0.4% less than the FY2016 appropriation and 2.9% less than what the Obama Administration requested.
- Fiscal Year 2017 Appropriations for the Department of Justice Grant Programs
- This report outlines the 2017 fiscal year appropriations for the five Department of Justice (DOJ) grant programs which assist communities with various criminal justice related issues. Congress provided a total of $2.320 billion for DOJ's five grant accounts, an amount that is 6.7% less than the FY2016 appropriation and 1.8% less than the Administration's request. Funding for three of the five grant accounts decreased for FY2017, the exceptions being Violence Against Women Programs (+$2 million) and the Community Oriented Policing Services (+$10 million). However, the increase in funding for the Community Oriented Policing Services account is largely attributable to Congress moving funding for the Regional Information Sharing System from the Research, Evaluation, and Statistics account to the Community Oriented Policing Services account.
- Special Counsels, Independent Counsels, and Special Prosecutors: Options for Independent Executive Investigations
- This report analyzes the use of special prosecutors and independent counsels that were authorized under now-expired provisions of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, as well as the use of special counsels that are currently authorized by Department of Justice (DOJ) regulations. It also addresses constitutional considerations in establishing independent inquiries to address perceived conflicts of interest between investigating officials and the officials being investigated.
- Update: What Constitutes "Sexual Abuse of a Minor" For Immigration Purposes
- This report provides an update of an earlier report from April 6, 2017, providing the final decision by the Supreme Court in the case of "Esquivel-Quintana v. Sessions". The case concerned the question of whether an immigrant alien who was convicted of sexual abuse of a minor where the minor was under 18 but at least 16 (in this case statutory rape in California between a 21 year old male and a 17 year female) was removable for an aggravated felony under immigration law. The Supreme Court ruled that the immigration law required the victim be under 16 before the removal of an alien for an aggravated felony would be allowable.
- When is Running Guns from the Philippines to Mexico a Federal Crime?
- This report discusses the case "United States v. Ubaldo" which concerns whether a gun smuggler who smuggled guns from a foreign country through the United States and then into another foreign country can be charged with a federal crime. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the conviction for conspiracy and causing the importation of weapons in violation of the Arms Export Control Act and ban on importing military firearms.
- Sifting Domestic Terrorism from Hate Crime ad Homegrown Violent Extremism
- This report defines the terms domestic terrorism, hate crimes, and homegrown violent extremism as used by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security and how they can intersect.
- Charlottesville Car Crash Attack: Possibility of Federal Criminal Prosecution
- This report discusses the announcement that the Charlottesville, Virginia car crash attack is being investigated as a federal civil rights case. It also outlines the sections of the federal law under which the attack could be classified.
- The State Department's "Trafficking in Persons" Report: Scope, Aid Restrictions, and Methodology
- This report describes the legislative provisions that govern the U.S. Department of State's production of the annual TIP Report, reviews country ranking trends in the TIP Report, and identifies recent congressional oversight of and legislative activity to modify the TIP Report. Answers to selected frequently asked questions (FAQs) are included throughout the report.
- Fiscal Year 2018 Appropriations for the Department of Justice
- This report discusses proposed appropriations for the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the 2018 fiscal year divided into each department of the DOJ. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (P.L. 115-31) appropriated $28.962 billion for DOJ while President Trump's proposed 2018 budget requests $28.205 billion for DOJ which amounts to 2.6% less than the FY2017-enacted appropriation.
- Why is Violence Rebounding in Mexico?
- This report discusses violence in Mexico fueled by organized crime cartels and the rising homicide rate which for 2017 based on preliminary reports will be above 18 per 100,000 persons. The rate in 2016 was 16.2 per 100,000. Various possible causes of the increase in violence discussed are the fragmentation of the Sinaloa Cartel, the increase in heroin trafficking and sales in the U.S., and the removal of major cartel bosses by the Mexican military leading to a power struggle in the organizations.
- Statute of Limitation in Federal Criminal Cases: An Overview
- This report describes the rules governing statutes of limitation for federal crimes and provides a list of federal statutes of limitation in criminal cases with a rough chart of comparable state provisions.
- Fibbing to Get a Lawyer: Circuits Split on Punishment
- This report discusses differing views held by U.S. appellate courts regarding whether lying about one's assets to pre-trial service personnel in order to get a court-appointed lawyer can be used as a justification to increase the sentence of the offender.
- Missing Adults: Background, Federal Programs, and Issues for Congress
- This report discusses federal efforts to assist local law enforcement in adult missing persons cases. It discusses demographics and record keeping of missing adults and unidentified remains; federally-funded databases that are used to track data on missing adults and unidentified individuals; federal programs and initiatives to assist in locating missing adults, including funding data; and issues regarding the federal role in missing adult cases.