Goodlatte & Conyers Applaud House Passage of Bill to Help Investigate Civil Rights Era Cold Cases

Washington, D.C. – The House of Representatives today amended and approved the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crimes Reauthorization Act (S. 2854) by voice vote to extend a critical program that helps investigate and prosecute Civil Rights era crimes. In 2008, the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act was signed into law by President George W. Bush to create a structured effort to investigate and prosecute racially-motivated crimes committed decades ago. Under the law, the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation work together to identify cold cases from the Civil Rights era that are ready for investigation and prosecution. Today’s House passage of an amended version of S. 2854 reauthorizes, strengthens, and expands the time period covered by this critical program to help bring justice to those responsible for these horrific crimes. The bill now heads back to the Senate for approval. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.) praised today’s approval of the bill in the statements below.

Chairman Goodlatte: “Our nation will forever bear scars for the crimes committed against our fellow Americans because of the color of their skin. While we cannot right these wrongs from our past, we must make every effort to bring those responsible for such atrocities to justice. The reauthorization and improvement of the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act will help solve cold cases from the Civil Rights era so that perpetrators face justice and victims’ families receive closure. I thank the many members that have worked on this important bill, including Representatives Lewis, Conyers, and Sensenbrenner.” Ranking Member Conyers: “We must never forget our nation’s dark past and should be mindful of our history and why so many in the African-American community raise the issue of whether black lives matter. Many Civil Rights era crimes were barely noted or investigated and I believe the perpetrators of those crimes should be brought to justice, even 50 years later. We passed the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crimes Act in 2007 to help bring these cases to light and seek justice for victims and their families. The Till Reauthorization Act will further empower the Department of Justice and cold case advocates to share information and review the status and closure of cases through 1980.  I applaud House passage of this legislation and urge my Senate colleagues to quickly pass the legislation, so that it can be signed into law.”

The House companion to S. 2854 was introduced by Representatives Lewis (D-Ga.), Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), and John Conyers (D-Mich.).