{"bills":[{"photos":{"featured":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/s231-116/featured_escape-of-saudi-nationals-act-1555311171.jpg","featured_large":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/s231-116/featured_large_escape-of-saudi-nationals-act-1555311171.jpg","shareable":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/bills/s231-116.png"},"introduced_on":"2019-01-25","title_override":"Should the U.S. Investigate the Escape of Saudi Students Who Flee the Country While Facing Criminal Charges?","summary_override":"

This bill – the ESCAPE of Saudi Nationals Act— would direct the Secretary of State to work with the highest levels of the Saudi government to investigate the disappearances of two Saudi nationals who escaped pending criminal charges in the U.S. Specifically, it’d call for the investigation of Abdulrahmeen Sameer Noorah, a Saudi national who fled Oregon before standing trial for manslaughter, felony hit-and-run, and reckless driving, and Ali Hussain Alhamoud, a Saudi national who fled Oregon for Saudi Arabia in 2012 before standing trial for multiple sex-crime charges, including rape in the first degree. Additionally, the Attorney General, in coordination with relevant federal and state authorities, would be directed to investigate whether any Saudi diplomat or Saudi government agent furnished Noorah with a fraudulent passport or assisted him in traveling to Saudi Arabia.

Should anyone with diplomatic or consular status be found to have assisted in Noorah’s escape, the President would be directed to declare them “persona non grata.”

This bill would direct the Dept. of State to not accredit any Saudi diplomat to serve in the Saudi consulate in Los Angeles until Abdhulrahman Noorah and Ali Hussain Alhamoud are returned to the U.S. to face criminal charges brought against them and the U.S. finds no reasonable cause to conclude that a Saudi diplomat or agent of the Saudi government aided in their return to Saudi Arabia.

This bill would also require the State Dept., in coordination with the U.S. Attorney General, to deliver a report investigating the Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles’ involvement, or lack thereof, in aiding Noorah’s and Alhamoud’s disappearances. This report would be due within 90 days of this bill’s passage.

Finally, this bill would amend the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to require the State Department to shut down any consulate or embassy in the U.S. found to have aided in the removal of one of its citizens in order to evade criminal accountability, provided Saudi diplomats found to have aided such a removal are not expelled from the U.S.

The bill’s full title is the Examining Saudi Consular Activities Promoting Extraction (ESCAPE) of Saudi Nationals Act.

","official_title":"A bill to express the sense of Congress regarding the likely involvement of the Government of Saudi Arabia in assisting no fewer than two Saudi nationals to avoid criminal prosecution in the United States, and to require the Secretary of State to submit a report to Congress that describes such involvement, and for other purposes.","short_title":"ESCAPE of Saudi Nationals Act","popular_title":null,"short_summary":"","summarized":true,"cost":null,"cost_commentary":"A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.","impact":"Saudi international studies accused of crimes in the U.S.; Saudi diplomats; Saudi consular officials; Saudi government agents; State Dept.; U.S. Attorney General; and the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956.","argument_for":"The Saudi government has very likely played a role in helping Saudi students facing criminal proceedings in the U.S. and Canada escape before their trial dates, or before serving their full terms. 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","page_title":"US Federal legislation related to Foreign Aid, International Trade and Relations and Human Rights - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/black_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/grey_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/white_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"middle-east","name":"Middle East","slug":"middle-east","description":"The decisions of the U.S. Congress regarding the Middle East are critical in maintaining peace in the region, as well as the world. 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Should the U.S. Investigate the Escape of Saudi Students Who Flee the Country While Facing Criminal Charges?