Justice for Victims of Lawless Cities Act of 2020

Bill: 116-hr-7506
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Budd, Ted [R-NC-13]
Introduced: 2020-07-09
Policy area: Law
Subjects: Civil actions and liability

Crime victims

Economic development

Evidence and witnesses

Housing and community development funding

Infrastructure development

Law enforcement administration and funding

Legal fees and court costs

Sex offenses

State and local finance

State and local government operations

Violent crime
Latest action: action_date: 2020-07-10
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-07-09
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Justice for Victims of Lawless Cities Act of 2020</b></p> <p>This bill allows a victim of a felony that occurs in an autonomous zone to sue and recover damages from the state or local government where the zone is located.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill applies to areas where, by law or practice, state or local officials or entities purposefully either refuse to provide emergency services to at least one individual or give up law enforcement powers to nongovernmental actors.</p> <p>Further, a state or local government must agree to waive any immunity regarding these civil actions as a condition of receiving a community development block grant or specified federal public works and economic development grants.</p>

tv_txt: I 116th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7506 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES July 9, 2020 Mr. Budd (for himself and Mr. Roy ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary , and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure , and Financial Services , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To provide a civil remedy for individuals harmed in lawless jurisdictions, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Justice for Victims of Lawless Cities Act of 2020 . 2. Definition In this Act, the term lawless jurisdiction means a designated area in a State or political subdivision of a State, which State or political subdivision has a statute, ordinance, policy, or practice in effect that, despite ongoing danger to individuals or property, allows any entity or official of the State or political subdivision of the State to, in such designated area, purposefully— (1) refuse to provide police, fire, or emergency medical services to 1 or more individuals in the State or political subdivision of the State; or (2) abdicate the reserved powers of the State or political subdivision of the State, to be performed by non-governmental actors in a manner that is detrimental to the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the State or political subdivision of the State. 3. Civil action for harm in a lawless jurisdiction (a) Private right of action (1) Cause of action Any individual, or a spouse, parent, or child of such individual (if the individual is deceased or permanently incapacitated), who is the victim of a murder, rape, or any felony (as defined by the State) which occurred in a lawless jurisdiction may bring an action for compensatory damages against a State or a political subdivision of a State in the appropriate Federal or State court. (2) Burden of proof In an action under paragraph (1), the court shall find in favor of the plaintiff if the plaintiff shows by a preponderance of the evidence that the harm described in paragraph (1) occurred in a lawless jurisdiction located in the State or political subdivision of a State. (3) Statute of limitations An action brought under this subsection may not be brought later than 10 years after the occurrence of the crime, or death of a person as a result of such crime, whichever occurs later. (4) Attorney’s fee and other costs In any action or proceeding under this subsection the court shall allow a prevailing plaintiff a reasonable attorney’s fee as part of the costs, and include expert fees as part of the attorney’s fee. (5) Rule of construction In the case of an entity that is harmed as a result of a felony (as defined by the State) which occurred in a lawless jurisdiction, the owner of the entity may bring an action under paragraph (1). (b) Waiver of immunity (1) In general Any State or political subdivision of a State that accepts a grant described in paragraph (2) from the Federal Government shall agree, as a condition of receiving such grant, to waive any immunity of such State or political subdivision relating to a civil action described in subsection (a). (2) Grants described The grants described in this paragraph are— (A) a grant for public works and economic development under section 201(a) of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 ( 42 U.S.C. 3141(a) ); (B) a grant for planning and administrative expenses under section 203(a) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 3143(a) ); (C) a supplemental grant under section 205(b) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 3145(b) ); (D) a grant for training, research, and technical assistance under section 207(a) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 3147(a) ); and (E) except as provided in paragraph (3), a community development block grant made pursuant to title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 ( 42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.). (3) Exception Grants described in paragraph (2)(E) shall not include any disaster relief grants to address the damage in an area for which the President has declared a disaster under title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5170 et seq.).