Rep. Stephen Solarz (D. NY) said yesterday that he has introduced legislation which would make the destruction of a house of worship, or the religious articles contained therein, a federal crime punishable by a $10,000 fine, five years in jail, or both.
The bill would amend federal civil rights statutes which already protect private homes and multiple dwellings from cross-burnings but which leave prosecution for church and synagogue burning to local law enforcement authorities. The proposed federal penalties would be in addition to any imposed by local courts for violations of state arson or vandalism laws.
Solarz’s action followed a rash of “suspicious” church and synagogue fires in his Brooklyn district and an apparent increase in such incidents across the nation. In one recent incident, a Brooklyn synagogue was gutted, and nine sacred Torah scrolls destroyed, by a fire set by vandals in the course of a burglary. The scrolls, some more than 200 years old and valued at several thousand dollars each, were buried following an elaborate funeral at which local religious and civic leaders demanded additional police protection and stiffer penalties for those convicted.
“If it’s a federal crime to burn a cross on someone’s lawn, then it should be a federal crime to burn a Torah scroll in someone’s synagogue, Solarz told the congregation of more than 500 persons. “The spirit of freedom of worship is violated unless there are substantial penalties for interfering with a congregation’s right to worship without fear, “he had told the congregation.
Although several Supreme Court decisions have ruled against persons accused of disrupting religious services, these were made with regard to civil statutes and have never been applied in federal criminal prosecutions, he said. Believing therefore, that they have no legal jurisdiction, U.S. Justice Department officials have sidestepped church and synagogue burnings unless they believed other statutes, such as those regarding explosives, to have been violated, Solarz said.
He stated that he will be seeking support for his bill from the nation’s religious community and especially from those denominations with a history of persecution. “We are speaking here of crimes against people, not merely crimes against properly, “Solarz said. “A house of worship can be rebuilt, but the trauma of watching one burn is not easily forgotten.”
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