House Crime Subcommittee Hearing Testimony on the LLEHCPA

On April 17, 2007, the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security held a hearing on the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (HR 1592), sponsored by Rep. John Conyers, D. Mich.

Witnesses who testified to the need for the bill include:

Frederick Lawrence

Dean and Robert Kramer Research Professor of Law, George Washington University Law School

"Bias crimes thus attack the victim not only physically but at the very core of his identity. It is an attack from which there is no escape. It is one thing to avoid the park at night because it is not safe. It is quite another to avoid certain neighborhoods because of, for example, one's race or religion. This heightened sense of vulnerability caused by bias crimes is beyond that normally found in crime victims."

Read the full testimony (pdf)

Jack McDevitt

Associate dean for Research and Graduate Studies and director of the Institute on Race and Justice, Northeastern University College of Criminal Justice

"It has long been known that these crimes are about messages and as such each crime is intended to send a message to all members of the target group that they are not welcome in the community, workplace or college campus ... As such, each hate crime affects many more people than the individual crime victim. These crimes can tear a community apart and pit neighbors against one another. Most importantly, these crimes threaten the very diversity that makes this country great. If members of certain groups are afraid to move into or drive through a particular community for fear of attack, America is weaker for it. "

Read the full testimony (pdf)

David Ritcheson

Hate crime victim

"The reality that hate is alive, strong, and thriving in the cities, towns, and cul-de-sacs of Suburbia, America was a surprise to me. America is the country I love and call home. However, the hate crime committed against me illustrates that we are still, in some aspects, a house divided. I know now that there are young people in this country who are suffering and confused, thirsting for guidance and in need of a moral compass. These are some of the many reasons I am here before you today asking that our government take the lead in deterring individuals like those who attacked me from committing unthinkable and violent crimes against others because of where they are from, the color of their skin, the God they worship, the person they love, or the way they look, talk or act."

Read the full testimony (pdf)

Mark L. Shurtleff

Utah attorney general

"Hate crimes have lead to the polarization of communities, increases in security needs at schools and churches, declines in property values and the creation of an overall atmosphere of fear and distrust. All too often that climate has hindered the efforts of local law enforcement and placed the lives of police officers and civilians in jeopardy."