The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“REMEMBERING JAMES JOSEPH DURANT” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S10645-S10646 on Nov. 19, 2008.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
REMEMBERING JAMES JOSEPH DURANT
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, today I wish to commemorate the life of a true American patriot--Mr. James Joseph Durant of Scarborough ME--and to mourn his passing.
Mr. Durant died in the line of duty almost two years ago while serving his community through the Volunteers in Police Services, VIPS, program.
His premature death not only devastated his family but left a void in the life and social fabric of his community and his State.
Mr. Durant led an admirable and remarkable life. He was married for 47 years to his high school sweetheart, Janine. They began dating in their sophomore year when they were forced to share her English book because he had conveniently forgotten his own. Mr. Durant was a dedicated and caring father to their three children and a doting grandfather of five.
He was a decorated U.S. Army soldier and combat veteran of the Vietnam War. Mr. Durant's loyalty to the Army and to his country was so profound that he refused a deferral from deployment to Vietnam to which he was entitled when his wife discovered that she was pregnant with their second child.
After his return from Vietnam, Mr. Durant dedicated his life to public service. He worked with distinction for over 25 years as an electronic technician for the Federal Aviation Administration at the Portland International Jetport. He also volunteered for many activities and programs in Scarborough, including VIPS, where he patrolled parking lots on behalf of the local police department.
Sadly, it was this commitment to public service that ultimately cost him his life. On December 15, 2006, while serving the citizens of Scarborough in his capacity as a member of VIPS, Mr. Durant responded to a nearby traffic accident.
He was helping the under-manned police department by directing traffic when a vehicle struck him from behind. Although Mr. Durant was not a career officer, Scarborough honored him with local law-
enforcement honors at his funeral. His was the first death of an officer in the line of duty in Scarborough's modern history.
Mr. Durant responded to the Nation's call for citizens to volunteer to help secure our homeland after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Managed on behalf of the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, VIPS provides an opportunity for ordinary citizens to volunteer in law enforcement. As a volunteer law enforcement officer, Mr. Durant made his community safer, stronger, and a better place to live.
Unfortunately, after Mr. Durant sacrificed his life heeding that call to service, the Federal government compounded his family's loss by denying their application for federal death benefits under the Public Safety Officer Benefits, PSOB, program.
According to the Department of Justice which administers the PSOB program, Mr. Durant did not qualify as a ``public safety officer'' within the meaning of the law.
The PSOB program has been plagued with problems since its inception. Most of the national law enforcement and fire services organizations, such as the International Association of Fire Fighters, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the Fraternal Order of Police, and the National Sheriff's Association, have long complained about the huge backlog of benefit applications and DoJ's overly strict interpretation of the law.
If we truly hope to encourage more Americans like Mr. Durant to engage in volunteer activities that safeguard our homeland, we must ensure that their families are taken care of in the event that they die while performing duties that public safety officers would have otherwise performed.
Mr. Durant is the first and so far only VIPS participant to have died in the line of duty. It would be folly to assume that he will be the last. That is why I believe that Congress should provide volunteers participating in VIPS and the Fire Corps, another potentially dangerous citizen volunteer program, with death benefits similar to those provided under the PSOB program.
I fully recognize that proposing to expand the PSOB program--even if narrowly--is controversial. But I also believe that such an expansion is necessary. In the future, I hope to reach agreement with my friends in the first responder community on a way to protect the families of volunteers, like Mr. Durant, who lose their lives protecting the citizens of this Nation.
I also pledge to continue working with them to ensure that the DoJ addresses their justifiable concerns with the administration of the PSOB program.
As a nation, we owe it to our first responders--whether career or volunteer--to care for their families when they have made the ultimate sacrifice to protect us. While I regret that the Federal Government has not fulfilled this obligation to Janine Durant and her family, I am committed to ensuring that our Nation treats its heroes honorably.
Mr. Durant was an ordinary American who did extraordinary things. Having already served his country in combat, having work and family obligations, he made the extra effort to serve his community, and lost his life in the process.
We are all poorer for his death, but we can redeem it by providing equitable treatment for the families of other volunteers who may perish while serving the public good.
____________________
