Fighting for a Safer Kansas

Stopping sex offenders

Derek wrote the Senate version of Jessica's Law, which puts violent sex offenders who prey on children where they belong -- in prison for life.
Derek wrote the law that lets victims of child pornography sue the pornographers who exploited them.

Derek wrote the Sheriff Matt Samuels Chemical Control Act, which sharply reduced meth production in Kansas by limiting access to chemicals needed for production. For his leadership, the Kansas Sheriff's Association named Derek a "Friend of Law Enforcement."
Derek led efforts to toughen penalties on meth manufacturers and dealers.

Derek led the effort to fight property crime by writing the law that puts repeat burglars and thieves behind bars, not back on the street.

Derek has led the fight to keep the Kansas death penalty law on the books. He contributed to the 2004 legal battle in which the United States Supreme Court upheld the Kansas death penalty law as constitutional. In 2010, Derek fought the attempt to repeal the death penalty.

Derek wrote the law making endangerment of our food supply a crime, a key step toward protecting Kansas agriculture after the 9-11 attacks.
Derek is a founding member of the agriculture law section of the Kansas Bar Association.

Derek wrote the law that punishes felons who wear body armor, carry firearms, or take other preparations to threaten law enforcement officers while committing their crimes. He has consistently stood behind the men and women serving on the frontlines of public safety in Kansas.

Derek led efforts to fund a next-generation telecommunications network for Kansas law enforcement agencies and to allow law enforcement agencies throughout the state to communicate more efficiently and to share a larger range of data, such as digital photos and fingerprints.
Derek personally shepherded the efforts to restore funding pay for forensic psychologists who are used by the state to evaluate inmates, including sex offenders being considered for civil commitment under the state's sex offender treatment program.
Derek carried to the Senate floor legislation to reduce the backlog of DNA samples at the KBI laboratory.

Derek wrote the Kansas "superdrunk" law that imposes added penalties for drivers with extremely high blood alcohol content. For his leadership in requiring drunken drivers to undergo alcohol treatment, Derek was named "Legislator of the Year" by the Kansas Alcohol and Drug Service Providers Association.