Lawmakers considering penalty enhancement for bias-motivated crimes

INDIANAPOLIS — Criminals who victimize members of minority groups or off-duty police officers soon could find themselves on the receiving end of an extra-long prison term.

A Senate committee voted 6-3 Tuesday to advance to the full chamber Senate Bill 439, allowing judges to consider why a crime victim was targeted when deciding whether to issue a prison sentence that exceeds the advisory term for felonies.

Specifically, the measure permits a crime motivated by bias toward a victim's actual or perceived race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, disability, national origin, ancestry or sexual orientation to count as an aggravating factor during sentencing.

The proposal was amended by the committee to also authorize a penalty enhancement when a police officer or the officer's family is targeted in a crime.

Read more: http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/lawmakers-considering-penalty-enhancement-for-bias-motivated-crimes/article_1e67fc8a-7469-5528-9604-31b1e92a6ee6.html