"In almost every homicide case now, in Philadelphia, people try to intimidate or forcibly injure the witness," said Williams.
"They target a witness," Casey said. "We need a federal law to target them."
The proposed State Witness Protection Act would set mandatory maximum penalties. Defendants convicted of attempted murder or the use of physical force would be sentenced to 30 years in prison. Up to 20 years could be imposed for a conviction of other types of witness intimidation.
"Of course, sending them to jail after it's over isn't the only solution," said Williams. "We need to do all that we can to prevent witness intimidation.
"Protecting witnesses has to be a cornerstone of our criminal-justice system," Williams said. "This legislation would be another tool to allow us to ensure that people who see something come forward, can tell what happened, be subject to cross-examination and be safe."
The issue of witness intimidation "shouldn't be a problem that one city like Philadelphia has to deal with on [its] own," Casey said, adding that making it a federal crime would bring more resources to local law-enforcement officials.
The bill does not authorize any additional spending. The measure currently has no co-sponsors, but Casey predicted it would garner bipartisan support. He will formally introduce the State Witness Protection Act in the Senate this week.
