Indiana lawmakers kill hate crimes bill again
Senate Republicans pulled the plug Tuesday on a hate crimes bill, leaving Indiana as one of only five states without such a law.
Senate leader David Long said Republicans could not reach agreement about Senate Bill 418, which would have allowed judges to impose tougher sentences for crimes motivated by factors such as race, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation.
“This is very disappointing,” said Rajesh Patnaik, whose sign shop in northwest Indianapolis was vandalized with anti-Hindu graffiti in September. “I was hoping there was momentum this time.”
The decision comes despite a rise in reported hate crimes in Indiana and five months after a violent white nationalist rally last summer in Charlottesville, Va.
Read more: https://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/30/indiana-lawmakers-kill-hate-crimes-bill-again/1078013001/
