Attorney General Eric Holder is asking the Senate to pass the Hate Crimes Bill sooner than later to free up the fed's ability to prosecute these crimes. The bill, named after Matthew Shepard, has passed the house but the senate has yet to chime in. It is expected to pass.
Judy and Dennis Shepard appeared on CNN to talk about the bill, which they have championed and hope to see pass. They also do a great job at shooting down the haters' talking points. Let's hope the senate moves on this, in honor of Matthew Shepard's memory.
– Andy
Matthew Shepard would not be alive today if the law was already in place. The two homophobes who killed him would not have saved his life if the law were in place. The same two homophobes would not have received any harsher penalties (currently life in prison) as a result of this law.
Why is this bill titled after Matthew Shepard?
Well, not all hate crimes have to result in death, and I am guessing that right now there are hate crimes being committed that are not being charged as such and maybe if they were the penalty would be different, harsher. The fact that these type of things would be recognized as hate crimes, I am guessing, would also shed some light on subject by calling things out for what they are and showing how messed up this world is…but I am no law expert, so that’s just my opinion. As to why name it after Matthew, I am guessing that it is because this was the first time that a case like this received so much attention in the whole world, first time in a long time that people paid attention to this. And also because his parents are the ones that have been battling this for over 10 years.