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Contributors
Chris Field- Contributor
Chris
Field is Editor of Human
Events Online [go
to Field index]
TWO
CENTS
 Watch
What You Think
Federal hate crimes...
[Chris Field] 6/10/04
In one of
his "Washington Updates" this week, Family
Research President Tony Perkins alerted readers that Hate Crimes
legislation may well rear its ugly head once again. Perkins wrote
that there has been talk "of attaching an amendment to the
Defense appropriation bill that would make so-called hate crimes
into a federal offense."
Not surprisingly,
liberal Sen. Ted Kennedy is behind the move to force what is
essentially "thought crime" legislation
down the throats of the American people. Unfortunately, one of
his partners in this effort, according to Perkins, is GOP Sen.
Orrin Hatch. By lending his name to Kennedy's horrible legislation,
Hatch makes the bill appear less onerous in the minds of many
conservatives who might otherwise oppose it.
Because I've not seen the amendment in question (nor can I confirm
that it actually exists yet), I cannot comment on its specific
contents. However, there is a Hate Crimes Bill (S 966) that Kennedy
introduced last summer which will more than likely serve as a
guide for any Hate Crimes amendment. Here are some of the bill's
provisions:
- Defines "hate
crime" as "a
crime in which the defendant intentionally selects a victim,
or in the case of a
property crime, the property that is the object of the crime,
because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion,
national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual
orientation
of any person."
- Finds
that "hate crimes" affect interstate commerce
(this is the constitutional justification and authority supporters
of the legislation invoke to push a bill like this) by "impeding
the movement of members of targeted groups and forcing such
members to move across State lines to escape the incidence
or risk of
such violence; and by preventing members of targeted groups
from purchasing goods and services, obtaining or sustaining
employment,
or participating in other commercial activity."
- Allows
federal prosecutors to take jurisdiction from State law enforcement
entities over "hate crimes" if the
official believes that (1) "the State does not have
jurisdiction or does not intend to exercise jurisdiction" OR
(2) "the
State has requested that the Federal Government take jurisdiction" OR
(3) "the State does not object to the Federal Government
assuming jurisdiction" OR (4) "the verdict or sentence
obtained pursuant to State charges left demonstratively unvindicated
the Federal interest in eradicating bias-motivated violence."
- Creates
two different types of offenses: a blanket federal crime
if the offense is
committed because of "actual or
perceived race, color, religion, or national origin" and
a provisional federal crime if the offense is committed because
of "actual or perceived religion, national origin, gender,
sexual orientation, or disability" and occurs in way
that affects interstate or foreign commerce. (The bill provides
a
number of ways commerce could be affected.)
Folks, this
is a dangerous and unconstitutional bill. Don't let your Congressmen
get away with supporting it. [I've got
more on this bill here.] CRO
copyright
2004 Human Events
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