[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 167 (Wednesday, December 5, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H8887-H8888]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              HATE CRIMES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, since the April 3, 2001 introduction of 
H.R. 1343, the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, more than 200 members (202) 
from both sides of the aisle have added their voices to the call for 
comprehensive legislation that will provide assistance to state and 
local law enforcement and amend federal law to streamline the 
investigation and prosecution of hate crimes.
  This legislation is a constructive and measured response to a problem 
that continues to plague our nation--violence motivated by prejudice. 
The legislation is designed to address two significant deficiencies in 
the existing bias crime law enforcement framework. First, the 
legislation loosens the overly restrictive federally protected activity 
requirement under existing hate crimes law. Second, the legislation 
expands the jurisdiction of the federal government to reach violent 
conduct aimed at victims on the basis of their gender, sexual 
orientation or disability status.
  Title 18, United States Code, Section 245, is one of the primary 
statutes used to combat racial and religious violence. At the time of 
its passage in 1968, a number of members of Congress wanted to limit 
the reach of the statute. They accomplished their goal by including a 
dual intent requirement. To establish a violation under Section 245, a 
federal prosecutor must prove that a defendant acted, for example, 
because of the victim's race and because the victim was exercising one 
of a limited category of federally protected rights (e.g., serving on a 
jury, voting or attending public school).
  The original version of the statute contained a less restrictive, but 
still substantial, intent requirement that the government prove the 
defendant acted while the victim engaged in a federally protected 
activity.
  This dual intent requirement has substantially hampered the hate 
crimes enforcement by the Department of Justice. There are numerous 
examples of heinous acts of violence that DOJ has either been unable to 
prosecute, or has been unsuccessful in prosecuting, due to the 
limitations of Section 245.
  One of the most egregious examples of the problems under current 
federal law occurred in a 1994 Texas hate crimes prosecution. A federal 
jury acquitted three white supremists of civil rights violations 
arising out of an incident where they stalked the street of Fort Worth 
hunting for African-American victims. Although the jury agreed that the 
defendants' actions were racially motivated, they acquitted the 
assailants because they could not conclude that they intended to 
deprive the victims of a federally protected right.
  The Hate Crimes Prevention Act would correct this deficiency by 
expanding the reach of federal jurisdiction to cover serious, violent 
bias crimes. Under the bill, hate crimes that cause death or bodily 
injury because of prejudice can be investigated federally, regardless 
of whether the victim was exercising a federally protected right.
  This legislation will also address inconsistencies in the coverage of 
current federal, state and local bias crime provisions. Current law 
does not permit federal involvement in a range of cases involving 
crimes motivated by bias against the victim's sexual orientation, 
gender or disability. This loophole is particularly significant given 
the fact that five states have no hate crime laws on the books, and 
another 21 states have extremely weak hate crimes laws.
  Our bill will expand the jurisdiction of federal law to cover sexual 
orientation, gender or disability, so the federal government will no 
longer be handicapped in its efforts to assist in the investigation and 
prosecution of hate crimes.
  In addition, through an Intergovernmental Assistance Program, federal 
authorities will be able to provide technical, forensic or 
prosecutorial assistance to state and local law enforcement officials. 
In addition, the legislation authorizes the Attorney General to make 
grants to state and local law enforcement agencies that have incurred 
extraordinary expenses associated with the investigation and 
prosecution of hate crimes.
  The Hate Crimes Prevention Act is endorsed by notable individuals and 
over 175 law enforcement, civil rights, civic and religious 
organizations, including: President Bush's Attorney General Dick 
Thornburgh; 22 State Attorney Generals; National Sheriffs' Association; 
International Association of Chiefs of

[[Page H8888]]

Police; U.S. Conference of Mayors; Presbyterian Church; Episcopal 
Church; and the Parent's Network on Disabilities.
  Poll after poll continues to show that the American public supports 
hate crimes legislation, including legislation inclusive of sexual 
orientation. A new Kaiser Family Foundation poll released last month 
shows that 73 percent of Americans support hate crime legislation that 
includes sexual orientation.
  Passage of a comprehensive law banning hate violence is long overdue. 
It is a federal crime to hijack an automobile or to possess cocaine, 
and it ought to be a federal crime to drag a man to death because of 
his race or to hang a man because of his sexual orientation. These are 
crimes that shock and shame our national conscience and they should be 
subject to federal law enforcement assistance and prosecution.

                          ____________________