Joe Biden's Top 10 Lasting Contributions To Criminal Justice

 

     Joe Biden chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1987 to 1995, and during this time he made some of the most significant contributions as a legislator. Working with Senator Orrin Hatch, the National Association of Police Organizations, and others, he drafted the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, the Violence Against Women Act, and the Brady Bill, which contributed the following to American society:

     1. The Brady Bill mandated background checks and waiting periods on the purchase of handguns.

     2. The Brady Bill banned the possession of firearms by felons.

     3. The Violence Against Women Act made domestic violence a federal crime and created the Domestic Violence Hotline.

     4. The VAWA created a rape shield law that banned using past sexual behavior of the victim as a defense against rape charges.

     5. The VCCLEA created mandatory sentencing for federal crimes and implemented a three-strikes law for repeat felons.

     6. The VCCLEA banned assault rifles for a decade until it expired in 2004.

     7. The VCCLEA provided mandates that required states to create sex offender registries.

     8. The VCCLEA hired 100,000 new police officers and made gang mebership a federal offense.

     9. The VCCLEA mandated the FBI collected hate crime statistics against those with disabilities.

     Biden also chaired the International Narcotics Control Caucus from 2007 to 2009 and served as a ranking member for many years. Aside from introducing legislation to combat ecstacy, sports doping, and date rape drugs, he:

     10. He introduced the RAVE Act, which criminalized running a home used for the sale of drugs, commonly called a "crack house."