Our Subcommittee on Crime and the full Judiciary Committee agreed that such authorization was needed. with some adjustments. I strongly support the bipartisan version reported by our committee and the amendment that will be offered by the gentleman from Texas. The gentlemans amendment wisely extends certain types of assistance into the areas of immigration and customs law. Posse comitatus is a criminal law enacted during reconstruction which prevents the Army and Air Force from serving as a posse. The confusion created by this law is a barrier to cooperation between the military and civilian law enforcement officials. Specifically. under that law. it is unclear what sort of assistance the military may legally provide and even which parts of the military are affected. Even though no one has apparently ever been prosecuted under the posse comitatus provision. it may form a basis for excluding evidence in criminal trials and an obstacle to recover under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Testimony before the Subcommittee on Crime earlier this year convinced us that something needed to be done about the problems created by posse comitatus. particularly in the area of drug smuggling and immigration. The Judiciary Committees version of section 908 addresses the problems that I have outlined by essentially codifying existing authority for the military to provide essential and appropriate assistance to civilian law enforcement authorities. By codifying this authority. we clarify the limits on military involvement in law enforcement. thus eliminating the confusion.
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immigration