[StBernard] Taking Back Our Communities From Criminals

[Westley Annis]

February 3, 2007	 
 	 
Dear friends,

Taking back our communities from criminals

The recent increase in violent crimes in our state has really struck a chord
with me. As a father, it is chilling every time the local news shows another
robbery or murder in our area. Like other families, my wife and I want to
know that we are raising our children in a safe community.

The current crime wave cannot be allowed to continue. Drastic actions must
be taken now. To address this issue, I introduced a bill in Congress to help
make the streets and communities in Louisiana safer. The Violent Crime
Reduction Act aims to coordinate federal, state and local law enforcement
agencies to better fight violent crimes, as well as drug and gang activity.

The evidence that change is needed is overwhelming. The City of New Orleans
and surrounding areas have been plagued by a significant increase in violent
crime since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, despite a drastic population
decrease. In 2006, 161 killings still occurred in New Orleans. Already in
2007, the number of people killed in New Orleans is in double digit numbers.
In 2005, Louisiana endured 26,889 violent crimes, 450 murders, and 19,681
aggravated assaults.

It is absolutely critical that something be done to stop the wave of violent
crime that has swept across Louisiana. Our state and nation have been
plagued by gang and drug violence and high murder rates for too long, and it
has to stop.

The bill I introduced will allow federal, state, and local law enforcement
agencies to work together to share intelligence and combat gang activity in
Louisiana. My bill will encourage full interaction and communication beyond
parish lines between law enforcement, prosecution, clerks of the court,
judges, corrections officials, and homeland security authorities. I believe
Louisiana can become a model for the nation as having the first fully
integrated automated criminal justice information system.

Our state has attempted to create a database to track criminals, arrests,
prosecutions, and convictions for the last 30 plus years, but there is still
no comprehensive method to track criminals across parish lines. This
database would also help law enforcement officers have vital information
they need when confronting a possible criminal. For example, if a sex
offender is released through the Orleans Parish criminal justice system and
is later pulled over blocks from an elementary school in Bossier City, this
database will give law enforcement officers a guaranteed database to pull
detailed information on the past arrests and crimes of the offender that was
previously unavailable.

I was honored to have the Sheriffs from Caddo and Jefferson Davis parishes
join me in unveiling these efforts to help make our state safer. We need our
local sheriffs, police chiefs, prosecutors, and state police to be connected
together, and my bill will make this possible. I will continue pushing this
bill through the House of Representatives to help protect our families and
our state.

Reforming catastrophic insurance

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita brought to light many problematic issues in our
state, and proved that our current insurance system is incapable of handling
catastrophic disasters like the hurricanes of 2005.

In the event of a catastrophic disaster, such as September 11, 2001, the
government has provided reinsurance in the event of a terrorist attack. In a
similar way, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita severely taxed the abilities of
companies providing insurance along the Gulf Coast to help their customers,
and something must be done to help these customers who are working to
rebuild their lives and homes. We should not be slighted simply because our
disaster was a natural occurrence rather than a terrorist attack.

To address this problem, I am currently working with my colleagues from
Mississippi on legislation that will create a reinsurance program that will
cover all catastrophic disasters. It is crucial that we provide national
reinsurance to limit the exposure of states, insurance companies, and
individual families. The current system has not worked, and has served as a
hindrance to families all along the Gulf Coast.

More than 53 percent of the U.S. population lives in the 673 coastal
counties and parishes, and it is critical that we provide insurance to these
areas. No one state should pay the costs alone of a catastrophic event like
Hurricanes Katrina or Rita. And the next time a natural catastrophic event
occurs, it could just as easily happen in New York or Florida which is why
it is crucial to reach out to members of Congress from other states. I will
continue working with my colleagues on this legislation, and I will be a
staunch advocate for this bill in the House of Representatives. 

Students of the Storm

This week, I had the opportunity to visit with a dynamic group of students
from Louisiana who came to Washington, D.C. to help remind other members of
Congress of the important work that still needs to be done to rebuild our
state.

The students I met with have taken it upon themselves to form Students of
the Storm, a student-led group dedicated to bringing more attention to the
needs of our state. While in town, dozens of students visited with Members
of Congress to advocate that Congress does not forget about Louisiana.

I applaud the efforts of these students, and I will continue to work in
Congress to remind my colleagues that our work is not finished in Louisiana.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend and please feel free to contact my
office if we can be of any assistance to you.

Sincerely,
Bobby