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“TRIBUTE TO SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE LEONARD D. RONCO” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E2094-E2095 on Nov. 2, 1995.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE LEONARD D. RONCO
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HON. WILLIAM J. MARTINI
of new jersey
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, November 1, 1995
Mr. MARTINI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Superior Court Judge Leonard D. Ronco. Judge Ronco has been a public servant since 1956 and will retire from the State bench on his 70th birthday, November 3, 1995.
Judge Ronco is a distinguished leader in Essex County, NJ, whose prudent rulings clearly reverberated and effected the larger community. The president-elect of the New Jersey State's Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Cathy Waldor, credited him with being, ``One of the finest, if not the finest judge in the State.''
This week, the Superior Court of New Jersey is indisputably loosing a leader respected by the people and the community as a whole. Further, he is a leader worthy of emulation, respected by his colleagues and admired by young aspiring lawyers and judges throughout the State.
Judge Ronco brought to the bench a unique perspective. As both a prosecutor and a defense attorney he was aware of all the nuances of the courtroom and the tactics employed by both sides. This awareness enabled him to holistically understand all arguments brought before him. Such a perspective and complete understanding could only further the pursuit of justice.
It is my hope that his leadership role in the community and the legal profession will not diminish with his retirement. The community can only gain because now he will have the opportunity to pursue a Golconda of leadership goals in Essex County.
His retirement should open up new roads that will challenge and beacon him. Roads that will once again enable him to effect the larger community albeit in a different capacity.
Mr. Speaker, I know you will join me in wishing Judge Leonard Ronco the best of luck on the journey before him.
MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN; THE TRAGEDY OF CHILDREN AT RISK
______
HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH
of new jersey
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, November 1, 1995
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, every day hundreds of abductions of innocent boys and girls are attempted. A study by the U.S. Justice Department reported that each year there are as many as 114,600 attempted abductions of children by non-family members. There are 4,600 reported abductions by non-family members. Even more horrifying is that 354,000 abductions are by family members. In addition, the Department of Justice also reported that 450,700 children ran away and 127,100 children are thrown away each year.
While these numbers are staggering and frightening they are also easy to hide behind, Mr. Speaker, because we do not often put a name or a face to this tragedy. Recently our colleague from Florida, Mr. Deutsch, has enabled all of us to see the human face of this issue. In many of our offices the notice about Jimmy Ryce, missing since he was abducted while walking home from school on September 11, have been hanging--a silent but powerful reminder of how vulnerable our children are.
Each Member of this House should be concerned about Jimmy Ryce because each day, in each of our districts, there are others like Jimmy who are walking home from school, playing in parks and recreation centers, at sporting and social events, at great risk of being kidnapped--taken from their homes and families.
An abduction of a child is just the beginning of unspeakable horrors that he or she might have to endure. It is often the preamble to a life of slavery and fear which may include physical and emotional abuse, forced prostitution, pornography, labor, and drug use.
Earlier this week, I hosted a briefing on the trafficking of children for prostitution and pornography in the United States. At this briefing we heard from activists who have dedicated themselves to intervention programs which attempt to locate children who are missing and are now caught in a cycle from which they cannot escape on their own. These people talked of the horrors that are inflicted on these children--they are raped and beaten and threatened with death, they become dependent on their pimps for every aspect of their existence. Treated as chattel, many of them are branded or tattooed to ensure that others know who
``owns'' them. Many of these children are exposed to sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis, AIDS, and other illnesses. They are denied adequate medical treatment and many of them die of these illnesses.
The number of children who are forced into this modern-day form of slavery is increasing, it is also a tragic fact that the age of these children is decreasing. We are able to document children as young as 4 years old who are victims of this abuse. Tragically, many of the children who are being abused in this way have been reported missing or kidnapped.
Sadly, Mr. Speaker, there are few individuals and even fewer organizations which actively work at documenting these missing and kidnapped children, locating them and assisting them in breaking the cycle of abuse and providing for them safe places where they can grow and develop. Organizations such as the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, H.I.P.S., the Paul and Lisa Program and Children of the Night offer some spark of hope for children who have been abducted. While they provide assistance to a few hundred children each year, the large numbers of children affected by this abuse is overwhelming.
More needs to be done. We must have greater concern for our children. They must not have to live in fear that they will be abducted and removed from all that they know and love, forced into a lives of virtual slavery. We owe a word of gratitude to those who have dedicated their lives to assisting the missing and exploited children of our Nation. But we must also pledge to our children and especially to Jimmy Ryce and the thousands of others who are missing and kidnapped that we will do all we can to find them, protect them and return them to their childhoods and the promise that the future should hold for them.
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