Hatch Lauds House Bill Addressing Default Mens Rea
Washington, D.C.—Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, member and former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement on introduction of H.R. 4002, Criminal Code Improvement Act of 2015:
“I applaud my House colleagues for taking a stand against unjust prosecution and incarceration of morally innocent actors by reforming criminal intent requirements. Too often, our criminal laws and regulations leave individuals vulnerable to prosecution for conduct they didn’t know was wrong. I have been working hard on mens rea reform here in the Senate and plan to introduce companion legislation soon. I look forward to working with my House colleagues to move this issue forward and to reduce our nation’s overcriminalization problem.”
