Congressional actions to protect judges, prosecutors, witnesses, victims, and their family members

The U.S. Constitution gives Congress the responsibility to oversee the federal judiciary. In addition to confirming judges and holding the power of impeachment, Congress also has the authority to take steps regarding the security of members of the judiciary. This page deals with these efforts.

Court Security Improvement Act of 2007
On April 18, 2007, the Senate considered a bill, sponsored by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), which would amend title 18, United States Code, to add protections for judges, prosecutors, witnesses, victims, and their family members.

Specifically, it would:


 * Require the Judicial Conference of the U.S., an oversight organization that provides sentencing guidelines and other necessary court administrative and regulatory decisions, to meet regularly with the U.S. Marshall Service to determine the judiciary’s security needs. The Conference would be authorized to redact any regulations requiring disclosure of a federal judge’s finances, including the same information on the judge’s family members through 2009.
 * Protect tax court personnel with the U.S. Marshall Service (USMS), who would receive $20 million to protect the judiciary. The funding could be used for hiring entry and senior-level marshals specifically to protect the judiciary and for program analysis and computer security systems for threat assessment.
 * Impose a possible prison term of ten years for filing, conspiring to file or attempting to file a false lien or encumbrance on real or personal property of a federal employee.

On April 18, the bill passed, 97-0.
 * Expand the crime of knowingly carrying or causing to be present a firearm in a federal court facility to include other dangerous weapons.
 * Expand penalties for witness tampering and increase prison terms for manslaughter involving a judiciary employee.