Before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary

Hearing on the Nominations of

William Jay Riley to be a judge on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals,
Deborah J. Daniels to be Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs,
and Sarah Vandenbraak Hart to be Director of the National Institute of Justice

It is both an honor and a pleasure to be here this afternoon with three extremely well-qualified nominees. I would like to congratulate all three of you on being selected by President Bush to serve in these important positions. All of you have distinguished yourselves with hard work and great intellect, and I think you will do great service to the citizens of this country upon confirmation.

Our sole judicial nominee today is William Jay Riley, who has been nominated for the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Riley graduated in 1972 from Nebraska Law School, where he was Editor in Chief of the Nebraska Law Review and was Order of the Coif. After graduation, he served as a law clerk for the Court to which he has now been nominated before entering private practice. Mr. Riley has been an active member of the legal profession, and with his outstanding legal credentials, he will be a fine addition to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Turning to our Department of Justice nominees, Deborah J. Daniels is President Bush’s nominee to be the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs. The Office of Justice Programs is in charge of developing the nation’s capacity to prevent crime, improving the criminal and juvenile justice systems, increasing knowledge about crime, and assisting crime victims. Ms. Daniels will be a superb leader of OJP. She graduated with honors from Indiana University School of Law, and has served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. In 1992, she became the first director of the Executive Office for Weed & Seed, which is part of OJP.

Our next nominee, Sarah Hart, is a similarly outstanding choice to serve as Director of the National Institute of Justice. The NIJ is the research and development agency of the U.S. Department of Justice, and it is dedicated to researching crime control and justice issues. Sarah Hart has plenty of experience in this area. She spent 7 years prosecuting criminal cases in Philadelphia and 9 years litigating over consent decrees governing the management of Philadelphia prisons. Throughout her career, Ms. Hart has worked extensively to expand the rights of crime victims.

Again, it is a great pleasure to welcome the three of you to the Committee. I look forward to working with Chairman Leahy and others to make sure the Committee and the full Senate hold timely votes on your nominations.

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