S. 2861 — Introduced in Senate

II 115th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 2861 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 16, 2018 Ms. Duckworth (for herself and Mr. Hoeven) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To prosecute, as a Federal crime, the assault or intimidation of a passenger train crew member to the same extent as such actions against aircraft crew members are prosecuted. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Passenger Rail Crew Protection Parity Act. 2. Interference with passenger train crew members (a) In general Chapter 281 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 28104. Interference with passenger train crew members (a) Offense It shall be unlawful for any person, while on a passenger train— (1) to assault or intimidate a crew member, and thereby interfere with the performance of the duties of a crew member or lessen the ability of a crew member to perform those duties; or (2) to attempt or conspire to perform an act described in paragraph (1). (b) Penalties A person who violates subsection (a)— (1) shall be fined under title 18, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both; and (2) if a dangerous weapon is used in assaulting or intimidating the crew member, shall be imprisoned for any term of years or for life. (c) Training Each passenger rail carrier is encouraged to review training programs of the rail carrier and provide, as necessary, additional training in areas such as de-escalating hostile situations, written protocols on dealing with hostile situations, and reporting of incidents. (d) Definition of crew member In this section, the term crew member includes engineers, conductors, on-board service personnel, and similar employees assigned to duty on an in-service passenger train. . (b) Clerical amendment The analysis for chapter 281 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 28104. Interference with passenger train crew members. .