U.S. Departnent of Justice

U.S. Departnent of Justice Office of Legislative Affairs i I i tt srs a Office of the Assistant Attomey General Washington, D.C. 20530 November 9, 2007 The Honorable John Conyers, Jr. Chairman Committee on the Judiciary U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515 Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter presents the views of the Department of Justice (the Department or DOJ) on H.R. 3887, the “William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2007,” as introduced by Congressman Lantos on October 18, 2007, The Department has significant concerns, which are detailed below in a section-by-section analysis. The proposed legislation, as drafted, would eliminate the Department’s role in several important steps in the victim identification process, and thereby negatively impact our ability to ensure the safety of victims and their families, rescue additional victims, and apprehend and prosecute human traffickers; it would broaden the criminal statutes regarding prosecution in a manner that detracts from effective enforcement efforts and raises serious federalism implications; and it would unconstitutionally intrude into Executive authority. 1. Sevtion 102 The provision in subsection (e)(2)(B) authorizing the Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP) at the Department of State to interview victims should clarify that the Director is authorized to do so only with the consent of the Attorney General in any case where an ongoing investigation or prosecution may exist. Otherwise, serious issues could arise that would complicate or even scutile prosecution. For example, any statements made to the Director would presumptively have to be turned over to the defense and any statements that contradict statements made to law enforcement or prosecutors would be required to be turned over to the defense. 2. Section 103 DOJ finds section 103 unnecessary and duplicative of existing efforts and, therefore, opposes its inclusion in the bill. DOJ and other Federal agencies are already offering the types of assistance that are described in the section. Furthermore, the new subsection (a)()(3) would require the United States Government to provide “technical assistance to provide legal frameworks and other programs to foreign governments and nongovernmental organizations to HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_012372