[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 77 (Wednesday, June 12, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5446-S5447]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         SUPPORT FOR THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ENHANCEMENT ACT

  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I was deeply disappointed that the Senate 
did not have enough votes to move forward on the hate crimes bill--even 
though a clear majority of the Senate supports this important measure.
  During the debate, many of my colleagues addressed the 
constitutionality of this legislation, and the role that the Federal 
Government should play

[[Page S5447]]

with regard to hate crimes. What speaks volumes to me about the 
importance of this legislation--and the reason the Senate's inaction is 
so disappointing--are the stories. The people behind the numbers. The 
victims and the survivors.
  In the strong hope that we will revisit this matter in the near 
future, let me share some of these stories--some of the awful realities 
of the crimes we are talking about. The most recent happened just last 
week in Riverside, CA.
  Last Thursday, two gay men were stabbed repeatedly in the back 
outside a popular gay bar. One of these men, 40-year-old Jeffrey Owens, 
died hours later. Michael Bussee, 48-years-old, managed to survive.
  According to the media reports, both men had come to the bar to 
celebrate a friend's birthday. After leaving the bar with their 
partners, Jeffrey Owens wanted to show everyone the pictures he had 
taken on a recent trip to Joshua Tree National Park. When he went to 
retrieve the pictures in his car, a man approached Michael Bussee, 
punched him, and then stabbed him in the back. Noting the commotion, 
Jeffrey Owens approached the perpetrator, and was stabbed four times in 
the back. Before stabbing Jeffrey, the attacker screamed a homophobic 
slur.
  Apparently, neither man knew how badly he had been hurt. Jeffrey 
Owens didn't even realize he had been stabbed until he stepped out of 
the car at the county hospital in Moreno Valley, when his friends saw 
his blood-soaked seat.
  Jeffrey Owens died hours later, after two operations. Michael Bussee 
was treated and released.
  There are countless other stories I could share with you, but I will 
only touch on a few of them here today.
  On September 7, 2000, a Los Angeles resident was charged with murder 
and hate crimes for allegedly killing a 65-year-old Hispanic man, Jesus 
Plascensia, by running him over at least twice in a parking lot. 
Authorities say she made comments about her hatred of Hispanics after 
she murdered him and referred to him as ``dead road kill.''
  On September 18, 2001, someone threw a Molotov cocktail through the 
window of a Sikh family's home in San Mateo, CA. The fuse was lit but, 
due to some miracle, the firebomb did not explode as it hit the head of 
a 3-year-old child in the house.
  In Santa Barbara, CA, a 37-year-old gay man named Clint Scott 
Risetter was killed after an alleged arsonist poured gasoline over him 
while he slept and set him on fire. The perpetrator says he killed 
Risetter ``because he was gay,'' and because he had ``a lot of hatred 
toward gay people.''
  And the list goes on and on. These stories are what make this bill so 
vitally important.
  This bill would extend current Federal hate crime protection--which 
covers race, religion, color and national origin--to gender, sexual 
orientation and disability. It would also make it easier to prosecute 
hate crimes at the Federal level.
  It is an extremely important tool to help our already overtaxed State 
and local law enforcement by allowing Federal assistance, when 
necessary, in the investigation and prosecutions of hate crimes.
  It would provide Federal assistance to State, local and Indian law 
enforcement officials who have run up extraordinary expenses in 
connection with their investigation and prosecution of hate crimes. It 
would also provide training grants to help local law enforcement 
officers identify, investigate, prosecute, and prevent hate crimes. 
Finally, it would allow the Justice Department to back up local law 
enforcement by removing arcane obstacles that prevent effective 
prosecution of hate crimes motivated by race, color, religion, or 
ethnicity.
  This bill has broad support from notable law enforcement agencies and 
state and local leaders, including 22 state Attorneys General, the 
International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Sheriff's 
Association, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, and 
others. With this broad-based support, and with the need so clearly 
urgent, this bill should be immediately passed.
  Two years ago we stressed the importance of passing hate crimes 
legislation. We cited the examples of James Byrd, Jr., of Matthew 
Shepard, and others. And we passed it.
  Here we are, two years later, making the same arguments and 
conducting the same debates. This time, the victims have new names: 
most recently, in my State of California, names such as Jeffrey Owens, 
Michael Bussee, Jesus Plascensia, and Clint Scott Risetter.
  The time to act is now. It is my hope that we will pass this vital 
legislation by the end of this year.

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