We are proud that Democrats led the fight to put more than 100,000 cops on the beat through the COPS program, and we will continue our steadfast support for COPS and community policing.
To keep our streets safe for our families, we support tough punishment of violent crime and smart efforts to reintegrate former prisoners into our communities as productive citizens.
We will crack down on the gang violence and drug crime that devastate so many communities, and we will increase drug treatment, including mandatory drug courts and mandatory drug testing for parolees and probationers,
so fewer crimes are committed in the first place. We support the rights of victims to be respected, to be heard, and to be compensated. We will help break the cycle of domestic violence by punishing offenders and standing with victims.
Serious crime is down to its lowest level in a quarter-century. But we have just begun to fight. We will fight to increase the number of community police. We will toughen the laws against serious crime. We will reform a justice system
that spills half a million prisoners back onto our streets each year. We will put the rights of victims and families first again. And we will push for more crime prevention, to stop the next generation of crime before it’s too late.
Source: Democratic National Platform
Aug 15, 2000
Tougher punishments, including the death penalty
Bill Clinton and Al Gore took office determined to turn the tide in the battle against crime, drugs, and disorder in our communities. They put in place a tougher more comprehensive strategy than anything tried before, a strategy to fight
crime on every single front: more police on the streets to thicken the thin blue line between order and disorder, tougher punishments - including the death penalty - for those that dare to terrorize the innocent, and smarter prevention
to stop crime before it even starts.
They stood up to the gun lobby, to pass the Brady Bill and ban deadly assault weapons - and stopped nearly half a million felons, fugitives, and stalkers from buying guns. They fought for and won the biggest
anti-drug budgets in history, every single year. They funded new prison cells, and expanded the death penalty for cop killers and terrorists.
Source: 2000 Democratic National Platform as adopted by the DNC
Aug 15, 2000
DNA testing & post-conviction reviews in death penalty cases
We believe that in death penalty cases, DNA testing should be used in all appropriate circumstances, and defendants should have effective assistance of counsel. In all death row cases, we encourage thorough post-conviction reviews.
We will put the rights of victims and families first again. And we will push for more crime prevention, to stop the next generation of crime before it’s too late.
Source: 2000 Democratic National Platform as adopted by the DNC
Aug 15, 2000
Click here for definitions & background information on Crime.
