I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3142 
To provide law enforcement critical tools and resources for preventing and 
enforcing violent crime. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 24, 2007 
Mr. REICHERT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To provide law enforcement critical tools and resources for 
preventing and enforcing violent crime. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Violent Crime Preven-
tion and Enforcement Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. GRADUATED PENALTIES FOR CIVIL VIOLATIONS BY 
FEDERAL FIREARMS LICENSEES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 923(e) of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
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‘‘(e)(1)(A) If the Attorney General determines that 
a licensee under this section has willfully violated any pro-
vision of this chapter or any regulation prescribed under 
this chapter, the Attorney General may— 
‘‘(i) if the violation is of a minor nature— 
‘‘(I) impose on the licensee a civil money 
penalty of not more than $1,000 for each in-
stance of such violation, except that the total 
amount of penalties imposed on a licensee 
under this subclause for violations arising from 
a single inspection shall not exceed $5,000; or 
‘‘(II) suspend the license for not more than 
30 days, if in the period for which the license 
has been in effect, the licensee on at least 1 
prior occasion has received a written notice of 
violation(s) of this chapter or any regulations 
prescribed under this chapter, and specify the 
circumstances under which the suspension is to 
be terminated; or 
‘‘(ii) if the violation is of a serious nature— 
‘‘(I) impose on the licensee a civil money 
penalty of not more than $2,500 for each in-
stance of such violation, except that the total 
amount of penalties imposed on a licensee 
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under this subclause for a violation arising from 
a single inspection shall not exceed $15,000; 
‘‘(II) suspend the license for not more than 
90 days, and specify the circumstances under 
which the suspension is to be terminated; 
‘‘(III) revoke the license; or 
‘‘(IV) take the actions described in sub-
clauses (I) and (II), or subclauses (I) and (III). 
‘‘(B)(i)(I) In determining the amount of a civil money 
penalty to impose under subparagraph (A) on a licensee, 
the nature and severity of the violation involved, the size 
of the firearms business operated by the licensee, and the 
prior record of the licensee shall be considered. 
‘‘(II) On request of the licensee, the Attorney General 
may consider the ability of the licensee to pay a civil 
money penalty, and may allow the licensee to submit docu-
ments and information to establish the ability of the li-
censee to pay. The Attorney General shall not make part 
of any public record any document or information so sub-
mitted, and shall return to the licensee any such document 
or information. 
‘‘(III) The total amount of penalties imposed on a 
licensee under subparagraph (A) with respect to violations 
of a minor nature and of a serious nature arising from 
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a single inspection or examination shall not exceed 
$15,000. 
‘‘(ii) For purposes of subparagraph (A), violation of 
a provision of this chapter with respect to 2 or more fire-
arms during a single transaction shall be considered a sin-
gle violation of the provision. 
‘‘(iii) The Attorney General may defer, or suspend, 
in whole or in part, the imposition of a civil money penalty 
on a licensee whose license is suspended under this para-
graph. 
‘‘(C) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the Attorney 
General shall prescribe by regulation which violations of 
this chapter shall be considered to be of a serious nature. 
‘‘(D) The Attorney General may not commence an 
enforcement action under subparagraph (A) with respect 
to any violation after the 2-year period that begins on the 
date the violation is discovered. The limitations period 
does not prevent the Attorney General from introducing 
evidence of any violation to establish willfulness. 
‘‘(2)(A) Not less than 30 days before the effective 
date of any penalty imposed on a licensee by reason of 
a determination made under paragraph (1), or of any de-
nial of an application for a license pursuant to subsection 
(d)(2) of this section, the Attorney General shall send the 
licensee a written notice— 
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‘‘(i) of the determination or denial, and the 
grounds on which the determination or denial was 
made; 
‘‘(ii) of the nature of the penalty; and 
‘‘(iii) that the licensee may, within 30 days 
after receipt of the notice, request a hearing to re-
view the determination or denial. 
‘‘(B) A hearing to review a determination or denial 
made under paragraph (1) or subsection (d)(2) of this sec-
tion with respect to a licensee shall not be held unless the 
licensee requests such a hearing within 30 days after re-
ceiving the notice of the determination or denial sent pur-
suant to subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(3) This subsection shall not be interpreted to affect 
the authority of the Attorney General under section 
922(t)(5) or section 924(p) of this title.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 923(f) of 
title 18, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraphs (1) and redesig-
nating paragraphs (2) through (4) as paragraphs 
(1) through (3), respectively; 
(2) in paragraph (1), as redesignated, by— 
(A) inserting ‘‘or otherwise imposes a sanc-
tion pursuant to subsection (e)’’ after ‘‘or re-
vokes, a license’’; 
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(B) striking ‘‘or revocation’’ and inserting 
‘‘or sanction pursuant to subsection (e)’’; 
(C) striking ‘‘In the case of a revocation of 
a license, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; and 
(D) striking ‘‘date of the revocation’’ and 
inserting ‘‘date of the sanction’’; and 
(3) in paragraph (2), as redesignated, by— 
(A) striking ‘‘(2)’’ each place it appears 
and inserting ‘‘(1)’’; 
(B) striking ‘‘or revoke a license’’ and in-
serting ‘‘or impose a sanction pursuant to sub-
section (e)’’; 
(C) striking ‘‘or revocation’’ and inserting 
‘‘or sanction under subsection (e)’’; and 
(D) striking ‘‘or to revoke the license’’ and 
inserting ‘‘or to impose the sanction under sub-
section (e)’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect 270 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO VIOLENT CRIME. 
(a) CLARIFICATION OF ILLEGAL GUN TRANSFERS TO 
COMMIT DRUG TRAFFICKING CRIME OR CRIMES OF VIO-
LENCE.—Section 924(h) of title 18, United States Code, 
is amended to read as follows: 
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‘‘(h) Whoever, in or affecting interstate or foreign 
commerce, knowingly transfers a firearm, knowing that 
the firearm will be used to commit, or possessed in fur-
therance of, a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime 
(as defined in subsection (c)(2)), shall be fined under this 
title and imprisoned not more than 20 years.’’. 
(b) CONSPIRACY PENALTY.—Section 371 of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘five years, 
or both.’’ and inserting ‘‘20 years (unless the maximum 
penalty for the crime that served as the object of the con-
spiracy has a maximum penalty of imprisonment of less 
than 20 years, in which case the maximum penalty under 
this section shall be the penalty for such crime), or both. 
This paragraph does not supersede any other penalty spe-
cifically set forth for a conspiracy offense.’’. 
SEC. 4. POSSESSION OF FIREARMS BY DANGEROUS FEL-
ONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 924(e) of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended by striking paragraph (1) and 
inserting the following: 
‘‘(1) In the case of a person who violates section 
922(g) of this title and has previously been convicted by 
any court referred to in section 922(g)(1) of a violent fel-
ony or a serious drug offense shall— 
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‘‘(A) in the case of 1 such prior conviction, 
where a period of not more than 10 years has 
elapsed since the later of the date of conviction and 
the date of release of the person from imprisonment 
for that conviction, be imprisoned for not more than 
15 years, fined under this title, or both; 
‘‘(B) in the case of 2 such prior convictions, 
committed on occasions different from one another, 
and where a period of not more than 10 years has 
elapsed since the later of the date of conviction and 
the date of release of the person from imprisonment 
for the most recent such conviction, be imprisoned 
for not more than 20 years, fined under this title, 
or both; and 
‘‘(C) in the case of 3 such prior convictions, 
committed on occasions different from one another, 
be fined under this title and imprisoned not less 
than 15 years or more than life, and notwith-
standing any other provision of law, the court shall 
not suspend the sentence of, or grant a probationary 
sentence to, such person with respect to the convic-
tion under section 922(g).’’. 
(b) AMENDMENT TO SENTENCING GUIDELINES.— 
Pursuant to its authority under section 994(p) of title 28, 
United States Code, the United States Sentencing Com-
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mission shall amend the Federal Sentencing Guidelines to 
provide for an appropriate increase in the offense level for 
violations of section 922(g) of title 18, United States 
Code, in accordance with section 924(e) of that title 18, 
as amended by subsection (a). 
SEC. 
5. 
EXPANSION 
OF 
REBUTTABLE 
PRESUMPTION 
AGAINST RELEASE OF PERSONS CHARGED 
WITH FIREARMS OFFENSES. 
Section 3142(e) of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended in the matter following paragraph (3) by insert-
ing ‘‘an offense under subsection (g)(1), (g)(2), (g)(4), 
(g)(5), (g)(8), or (g)(9) of section 922,’’ after ‘‘that the 
person committed’’. 
SEC. 6. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 
Section 922(d) of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by insert-
ing ‘‘, transfer,’’ after ‘‘sell’’. 
SEC. 7. INCREASED PENALTIES FOR INTERSTATE AND FOR-
EIGN TRAVEL OR TRANSPORTATION IN AID 
OF RACKETEERING. 
Section 1952 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘perform’’ and 
all that follows through the end of the subsection 
and inserting ‘‘perform or attempts to perform an 
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act described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3), or con-
spires to do so, shall be punished as provided in sub-
section (d).’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end following: 
‘‘(d) The punishment for an offense under subsection 
(a) is— 
‘‘(1) in the case of a violation of paragraph (1) 
or (3), a fine under this title and imprisonment for 
not more than 20 years; and 
‘‘(2) in the case of a violation of paragraph (2), 
a fine under this title and imprisonment for any 
term of years or for life, but if death results the of-
fender may be sentenced to death.’’. 
SEC. 8. INCREASED PENALTIES FOR USE OF INTERSTATE 
COMMERCE FACILITIES IN THE COMMISSION 
OF MURDER-FOR-HIRE AND OTHER FELONY 
CRIMES OF VIOLENCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1958 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking the section heading and insert-
ing the following: 
‘‘§ 1958. Use of interstate commerce facilities in the 
commission of murder-for-hire and other 
felony crimes of violence’’; and 
(2) in subsection (a), by— 
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(A) inserting ‘‘or other crime of violence, 
punishable by imprisonment for more than 1 
year,’’ after ‘‘intent that a murder’’; and 
(B) striking ‘‘shall be fined’’ the first place 
it appears and all that follows through the end 
of such subsection and inserting the following: 
‘‘shall, in addition to being subject to a fine 
under this title— 
‘‘(1) if death results, be sentenced to death or 
life in prison; 
‘‘(2) if the crime of violence is kidnapping, ag-
gravated sexual abuse (as defined in section 521), or 
maiming, or a conspiracy to commit such a crime of 
violence, be imprisoned any term of years or for life; 
‘‘(3) if the crime of violence is an assault, or a 
conspiracy to assault, that results in serious bodily 
injury (as defined in section 1365), be imprisoned 
not more than 30 years; and 
‘‘(4) in any other case, be imprisoned not more 
than 20 years.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The item relating to 
section 1958 in the table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 95 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 
to read as follows: 
‘‘1958. Use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for- 
hire and other felony crimes of violence.’’. 
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