Indiana 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.
“We could not reach consensus,” said Sen. Susan Glick, R-LaGrange, who carried the legislation. “That’s why there were so many amendments offered, and that’s why we pulled it back."
Long said he believes there is growing public acceptance for the legislation and he expects lawmakers to take it up again in 2019. But the measure is dead for this year, he said.
“I think time will change some people’s opinions in our caucus, or we’ll have different members in there in the future,” he said. “It’s important not to misunderstand what happened today. It’s not for a lack of caring or belief that you shouldn’t do it. It’s just how you do it and the language you use.”
A recent poll indicated that nearly two-thirds of Hoosiers favor a hate crimes law. But such measures have consistently failed in recent years at the General Assembly amid fierce opposition from social conservatives, who argue hate crime laws create special protected classes that treat victims of similar crimes differently.
For example, prominent Republican attorney Jim Bopp argued last week that the legislation only adds stiffer penalties for crimes committed against people deemed worthy by liberals and the business community. The legislation would leave out Trump supporters who might be physically attacked solely for their political beliefs, he said.