[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 26, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S2833]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 2001

  Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the need for 
hate crimes legislation. In the last Congress Senator Kennedy and I 
introduced the Local Law Enforcement Act, a bill that would add new 
categories to current hate crimes law, sending a signal that violence 
of any kind is unacceptable in our society.
  I would like to describe a terrible crime that occurred in March 2001 
in Portage, WI. A gay man was found murdered in an apartment. The 
assailant, Darrin Grosskopf, was drinking with the victim, Keith Ward, 
and claimed that Ward made sexual advances toward him. Grosskopf told 
police that he thought Ward was a homosexual. When police found Ward's 
body in the apartment, he was naked and had a stab wound in his chest.
  I believe that government's first duty is to defend its citizens, to 
defend them against the harms that come out of hate. The Local Law 
Enforcement Enhancement Act is a symbol that can become substance. I 
believe that by passing this legislation and changing current law, we 
can change hearts and minds as well.

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