Letter from Washington

Both the Justice Department and the White House feel considerable satisfaction at the passage of the much-debated D. C. Crime Bill. Provisions for pre-trial detention—“preventive detention” in the popular lingo—would give law enforcement officers in the District of Columbia valuable powers to cope with the multiple offender who wants one last big haul to take care of his family while he’s being put away.

The value of the “no-knock” clause is more controversial. In the latter instance, the split between the Administration and old-line Southerners like Senators Sam Ervin (D., N.C.) and John Stennis (D., Miss.) may be lasting enough to lead to some court tests. Both as a practical tool to aid law enforcement and as a piece of legislation whose constitutionality will have to be tested, the D. C. Crime Bill is very much an unknown quantity.

Featured Tags

Department of Justice

White House

Congress

Supreme Court

Both the Justice Department and the White House feel considerable satisfaction at the passage of the much-debated D. C. Crime Bill. Provisions for pre-trial detention—“preventive detention” in the popular lingo—would give law enforcement officers in the District of Columbia valuable powers to cope with the multiple offender who wants one last big haul to take care of his family while he’s being put away.

The value of the “no-knock” clause is more controversial. In the latter instance, the split between the Administration and old-line Southerners like Senators Sam Ervin (D., N.C.) and John Stennis (D., Miss.) may be lasting enough to lead to some court tests. Both as a practical tool to aid law enforcement and as a piece of legislation whose constitutionality will have to be tested, the D. C. Crime Bill is very much an unknown quantity.