Section 490.00. Legislative findings  


Latest version.
  • The  devastating  consequences  of  the  recent barbaric attack on the
      World Trade Center and the Pentagon underscore the compelling  need  for
      legislation  that  is  specifically  designed  to  combat  the  evils of
      terrorism. Indeed, the bombings  of  American  embassies  in  Kenya  and
      Tanzania  in 1998, the federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995, Pan Am
      Flight number 103 in Lockerbie in  1988,  the  1997  shooting  atop  the
      Empire State Building, the 1994 murder of Ari Halberstam on the Brooklyn
      Bridge  and  the  1993  bombing  of the World Trade Center, will forever
      serve to remind us that terrorism is a serious and deadly  problem  that
      disrupts  public  order and threatens individual safety both at home and
      around the world. Terrorism is inconsistent with civilized  society  and
      cannot be tolerated.
        Although certain federal laws seek to curb the incidence of terrorism,
      there  are  no  corresponding state laws that facilitate the prosecution
      and punishment of terrorists in state  courts.  Inexplicably,  there  is
      also  no  criminal  penalty  in  this state for a person who solicits or
      raises funds for, or provides other material support  or  resources  to,
      those  who  commit  or encourage the commission of horrific and cowardly
      acts of terrorism. Nor do our criminal  laws  proscribe  the  making  of
      terrorist  threats  or punish with appropriate severity those who hinder
      the prosecution of terrorists. Finally, our death penalty  statute  must
      be  strengthened so that the cold-blooded execution of an individual for
      terrorist purposes is a capital offense.
        A comprehensive state law is urgently  needed  to  complement  federal
      laws  in  the fight against terrorism and to better protect all citizens
      against terrorist acts. Accordingly, the legislature finds that our laws
      must be strengthened to ensure that terrorists, as  well  as  those  who
      solicit  or  provide  financial  and  other  support  to terrorists, are
      prosecuted and punished in state courts with appropriate severity.