Having served as Oneida County District Attorney for 13 years, I know first-hand how critical it is for our law enforcement to have the funds they need to protect us and keep themselves safe.  I ran for the District Attorney’s office because I was raising a young family in Utica and was tired of rising crime – as D.A., I put criminals behind bars and reduced crime rates in Oneida County.

I worked side-by-side with police officers throughout Upstate to make our streets safer. Those officers knew they could count on me to stand up for them as D.A., and now they know I’m an ally in Congress to make sure police officers have the resources they need.

I joined with over 100 representatives – a bipartisan group -- calling for restoration of the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program and was a cosponsor of the bipartisan COPS Reauthorization Act of 2007, to provide $1.15 billion a year over the next six years for COPS programs nationwide. The COPS program, which puts more police officers on the streets, has proven effective in the fight to reduce violent crime.

I also introduced legislation to create a new grant program geared exclusively toward gang-related violent crime.  Communities in Upstate must face these very real challenges, and this grant program will help states and localities work with local law enforcement and prosecutors to attack gang crime.  My bill, H.R. 3568, will help combat gangs and keep our downtowns safe for future generations.

Internet security also poses a serious danger and I have cosponsored legislation to protect children and families from online predators.  I joined my colleagues to support the Safeguarding America’s Families by Enhancing and Reorganizing New and Efficient Technologies Act (The SAFER NET Act, H.R. 1008) and the Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators (the KIDS Act of 2007, H.R. 719), which would protect families from identity theft.