New Mexico Telegram » Delegation, Featured » Obama signs Katie Sepich bill into law
Obama signs Katie Sepich bill into law
President Barack Obama signed a bill requiring DNA collection from those arrested for felonies.
The bill, called Katie Sepich Enhanced DNA Collection Act of 2012, is named after a New Mexico resident who was raped and murdered in 2003. New Mexico already has a similar law on the books and it is known as Katie’s Law.
Sepich’s killer was only found after he had been convicted of another crime and his DNA was compared to other crimes.
Senator Tom Udall and then-Senator Jeff Bingaman introduced a Senate version of the legislation in March of 2011.
“Katie’s parents have dedicated their lives to making sure their daughter’s murder resulted in meaningful action,” said Udall. “Today’s bill signing is a credit to their work and determination and means that other states can set up DNA collection programs like New Mexico’s to help catch dangerous criminals and prevent heartbreaking tragedies like Katie’s from happening in the future.”
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich was a cosponsor for the bill as a member of the House. All three members of the House from New Mexico were cosponsors of the legislation.
The bill was introduced in 2010 by then-Rep. Harry Teague.
Written by Matthew Reichbach
Matthew Reichbach has blogged about New Mexico politics since 2006. Matthew was a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and part of the original hirings at the groundbreaking website the New Mexico Independent. Matthew has covered events such as the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation. In addition to politics, Matthew is an avid sports fan, especially of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and TV fan.
Filed under: Delegation, Featured · Tags: Katie Sepich, Martin Heinrich, Tom Udall
3 Responses to "Obama signs Katie Sepich bill into law"
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Congratulations to Dave and Jayann to all their tireless efforts to seek each state one by one, continuous meetings and speaking engagements to get this bill passed. Thank you Mr. President for signing this bill and saving many parents the nightmares that these two wonderful parents went thru. They give us hope and courage to never give up.
Poor young women get raped and killed everday here. What if they had rich white parents with connections to government too?
what does race have to do with it? there are rich black people, rich mexicans, rich chinese people, rich people in all ethnicities. why do you have to cry racism?