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House Approves Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act

On July 14, the House passed, by voice vote, H.R. 5057, a bill to reauthorize the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant program. The bill was approved by the House Judiciary Committee on June 12 (see The Source, 6/13/08).

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), the bill’s sponsor, said, “We cannot stand by and let rapists roam free while the DNA evidence that could convict them goes unprocessed. Passing the original Debbie Smith bill was a huge victory for Debbie Smith, and for the thousands of rape survivors like her…Reauthorizing the Debbie Smith Act will ensure [that] we continue to keep criminals off our streets and put them in prison where they belong.”