 |
          |
Review of 2006 Hate Crime Legislation
State LegislationAssembly Bill 1160 (Lieber)The 2006 AB 1160 prohibited the use of societal bias, such as “panic strategies,” from consideration by juries in criminal proceedings as a defense to justify acquittal or to reduce charges. For example, some defendants on trial for antigay and anti-transgender hate crimes have argued in court that their revulsion of their victims’ sexual/gender identities were mitigating circumstances in their culpability. The bill also requires the Office of Emergency Services to develop materials for city and county prosecutors to explain how to prevent bias from affecting the outcome of a trial. The Governor signed this bill into law. Assembly Bill 2800 (Laird)The Civil Rights Housing Act of 2006 would have standardized housing-related non-discrimination provisions in California law to synchronize them with the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The Governor signed this bill into law. Assembly Concurrent Resolution 56( Chu )ACR 56 designated June 2006 as Hate Crimes Awareness Month. Assembly Bill 1056 ( Chu )AB 1056 required the State Board of Education to consult with Human Relations Commissions, individuals, and groups that are protected by California ’s hate crimes legislation to develop a pilot project that will integrate intergroup relations and tolerance curriculum into English and Social Science studies. The Governor vetoed this bill. Assembly Bill 2510 (Lieu)AB 2510 would have helped the state better measure the occurrences of bias-related discrimination in schools, as well as how students handle such events, by including additional questions in the statewide survey which is conducted every other year in grades 7, 9, and 11. The Governor vetoed this bill. Assembly Bill 606 (Levine)The Safe Place to Learn Act would have required the State Department of Education to develop a model anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy and post it on its website by January 1, 2008 to ensure that schools are in compliance with the California Student Safety and Violence Act of 2000 (AB537). The Governor vetoed this bill. Senate Bill 1437 (Kuehl)SB 1437 aimed to promote an atmosphere of safety and respect in California schools by adding sexual orientation and gender identity as protected categories to an existing law that prohibits instruction or school-sponsored activities that reflect adversely upon persons, because of their race, sex, color, creed, handicap, national origin or ancestry. The Governor vetoed this bill. Federal LegislationLocal Law Enforcement Enhancement ActS.1145 (LLEEA) would amend the 1969 federal hate crimes law by including crimes that target people based on real or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. This law would also facilitate a remedy for a hate crime victim at the federal level if local authorities are unwilling or unable to exercise their jurisdiction. LLEEA was not adopted in 2006. Note: The House of Representatives passed the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act H.R. 1592 on May 3, 2007. The President has threatened to veto the bill if it reaches his desk. It is currently in committee in the U.S. Senate (Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act S.1105.)
|
|
|
Job & Internship Opportunities | County
Homepage | Privacy
Statement |