The Senate Judiciary Committee passed an anti-terrorism bill Thursday that was authored by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and designed to close several small legal loopholes that aid international crime.
"This legislation is a package of moderate technical responses to weaknesses in current law that would make a real difference in the fight against international crime," Hatch said."Our proposal, among other things, improves federal laws that regulate the jurisdiction of law enforcement, allow exclusion of violent criminals, determine how our legal system deals with foreign defendants and records and respond to emerging computer and financial crimes," he said.
The bill now goes to the full Senate.
Among its provisions are extending U.S. investigative authority to cover crimes abroad by organized criminal groups against U.S. nationals. It also enhances law enforcement authority to board ships and expands wiretap authority to cover computer hackers and fraud.
Also, it expands extraterritorial jurisdiction to cover credit card, ATM and other electronic fraud, changes rules of evidence to ease admission of foreign records and bars foreign fugitives from receiving credit for time served in correctional facilities abroad.