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Draft:The Soldiers Amendment

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The Soldiers Amendment (Pub. L. 111–84, div. E §4712) is a part of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act that created hate crimes protections for service members and their families up to five years after discharge. Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama introduced the amendment and gave it its name during floor debate in the Senate on July 9, 2009. At signing, The Soldiers Amendment appeared as Section 4712 the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 and became part of federal law at 18 U.S.C. § 1389. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has not charged anyone under the law.

Legislative History

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Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Senator Jeff Sessions introduced Amendment 1616 to the NDAA by saying, "This amendment would create a new Federal crime which puts members of the U.S. military on equal footing with other protected classes"[1] and named it The Soldiers Amendment. Following discussion, the amendment was agreed to unanimously by all 92 Senators present.

During Senate debate on the conference report on October 22, Senator Carl Levin remarked that The Soldiers Amendment would create “for the first time, a provision that makes it a Federal crime to attack a member of the U.S. Armed Forces on account of his or her military service--a hate crime that is of particular interest to the armed services."[2] The Soldiers Amendment was signed into law by President Barack Obama as part of the NDAA six days later.

Regulation and Enforcement

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Upon passage of the hate crimes bill, The Soldiers Amendment entered federal law as 18 U.S.C. §1389.[3] On November 1, 2010, the United States Sentencing Commission classified offenses under The Soldiers Amendment as a class C, D, or E felony with a maximum sentence of no "more than 10 years in the case of a battery, or an assault resulting in bodily injury."[4] The Department of Justice's Servicemember and Veterans Initiative website does not include any information about The Soldiers Amendment.[5] The Federal Bureau of Investigation has not enforced 18 U.S.C. §1389 in cases involving violent crimes targeting military families;

  • In 2010, a Baltimore man was charged with Attempted Murder of Federal Officers/Employees (18 U.S.C. §1114) for planning "to attack and kill military personnel" at an Armed Forces recruiting station in Catonsville, MD.[6]
  • In 2013, a New York City pizza shop owner was charged under the same law, as well as two counts of Possession of an Unregistered Firearm Silencer, after he was caught planning to murder customers returning from deployments in the Middle East.[7]
  • In 2014, two Illinois cousins were charged with Providing Material Support to a Foreign Terrorist Organization for planning an attack on National Guard soldiers at an armory near Chicago.[8]
  • In 2015, an Ohio man was arrested before he could carry out a plan to kill an identified military personnel on account of on account of their service. The plan included abducting the individual and their family at their home and filming the execution. After killing the family, he planned to perpetrate a violent attack on a nearby police station.[9]
  • In 2015 another Ohio man was arrested for several social media posts in which he posted names and addresses of 100 U.S. service members with the intent to have them killed.[10] The initial complaint included 18 U.S.C. §1389, but that charge was later dropped.[11]
  • In 2017, a Wisconsin man was charged threatening to shoot an Alabama National Guardsman because he was taking orders from President Barack Obama.[12]

On November 13, 2019, the United States Commission on Civil Rights prepared a Briefing Report titled "In the Name of Hate: Examining the Federal Government’s Role in Responding to Hate Crimes.[13] Planned for the ten year anniversary of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, the Commission excluded Section 4712 of the Act, containing the Soldiers Amendment.

References

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  1. ^ Congressional Record Vol. 155, No. 109 (Senate - July 20, 2009)
  2. ^ Congressional Record Vol. 155, No. 154 (Senate - October 22, 2009)
  3. ^ "GovInfo". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
  4. ^ "743". United States Sentencing Commission. 2019-03-12. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
  5. ^ "Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative | Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative". www.justice.gov. 2015-07-20. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
  6. ^ United States v. Martinez, Crim. Case No. 10-4761 JKB (Dist. Court, D. Maryland, 2010), Complaint Statement of Facts.
  7. ^ "Western District of New York | Rochester Man Indicted on Charges of Attempting to Provide Material Support by Recruiting Multiple Individuals to Join ISIS, Attempting to Kill U.S. Soldiers, and Possession of Firearms and Silencers | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2014-11-18. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
  8. ^ "Office of Public Affairs | US Army National Guard Soldier and his Cousin Arrested for Conspiring to Support Terrorism (ISIL) | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2015-03-26. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  9. ^ "Office of Public Affairs | Cincinnati-Area Man Pleads Guilty to Plot to Attack U.S. Government Officers | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2016-07-07. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  10. ^ "Ohio Man Arrested for Soliciting the Murder of Members of the U.S. Military". Federal Bureau of Investigation. November 12, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  11. ^ United States v. McNeil, Crim. Case No. 5:25MJ1176 (Dist. Court, N.D. Ohio, Eastern Division, 2015), Complaint Background and Probable Cause, item 8a.
  12. ^ "Man Sentenced For Threatening To Shoot Alabama Guard Member - CBS Minnesota". www.cbsnews.com. 2019-06-10. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  13. ^ https://www.usccr.gov/files/pubs/2019/11-13-In-the-Name-of-Hate.pdf
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