On June 30, the House passed, by voice vote, the Senate amendments to the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (H.R. 3360). The House passed the original version of the bill, sponsored by Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), last year (see The Source, 11/20/09); the Senate passed its amended version on June 10 by unanimous consent.
The measure contains provisions regarding the prevention and reporting of sexual assaults on cruise ships and treatment of individuals who have been sexually assaulted while on cruise ships. These provisions, among others, also were incorporated into the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act (H.R. 3619), which the House passed in October (see The Source, 10/23/09) and the Senate passed in May (see The Source, 5/7/10).
During the Senate’s consideration of H.R. 3360, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) said, “I am pleased to support the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2010 and glad to join the full Senate today in passing this important bill…Far too many incidents of sexual assault and other serious crimes continue to occur on board cruise ships despite ongoing media and congressional attention to this problem. I have long worked to improve protections for crime victims through landmark legislation including the Victims of Crime Act [P.L. 98-473] and the Violence Against Women Act [P.L. 109-162]. I applaud Sen. [John] Kerry [(D-MA)] for his leadership in ensuring those protections extend to Americans traveling aboard cruise ships…I am particularly pleased to see that the legislation will improve the treatment and protections victims receive on board a cruise ship following a crime. For example, a licensed medical practitioner will be required on board all ships to provide immediate treatment, including medications to prevent sexually transmitted diseases after an assault and to conduct forensic examinations to help collect critical evidence for later prosecution. I have worked hard to ensure that these kinds of services to assist victims and to facilitate successful prosecution of those who commit terrible crimes are available throughout the country. I am glad that this bill will help ensure that Americans traveling at sea receive these same vital services. These important common-sense provisions will help prevent further crimes from happening by improving security measures on our country’s cruise ships, while also improving our ability to hold the perpetrators of these serious crimes accountable.”
