ADL Commends Attorney General McCollum for Leadership on Hate Crimes Legislation

Date: October 15, 2009

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) commends Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum for his leadership in obtaining the support of State Attorneys General for the federal hate crimes legislation recently approved by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Serving as a principal signature on a letter in support of The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act (HCPA), Attorney General McCollum along with the Illinois Attorney General secured the support of twenty-four Attorneys General for this vital legislation.  Addressed to the Chairmen and Ranking members of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, the letter urged retention of the HCPA in FY2010 Department of Defense Measure.

The letter stated in part:

"States Attorneys General support has been an essential factor in moving the HCPA forward," said David Barkey, ADL Southern Area Counsel.  "And we are grateful to Attorney General McCollum for his leadership on this much needed legislation. The timely letter initiated by Attorney General McCollum no doubt had an important impact on the House vote and hopefully will do the same in the Senate," said Barkey.

The HCPA passed the U.S. House of Representatives on October 8th as part of the FY 2010 Department of Defense Authorization Conference Report, by a vote of 281-146. 

The HCPA provides new authority for federal officials to work in partnership with state and local law enforcement to more effectively address hate violence.  The measure also provides authority for the federal government to prosecute some violent bias-motivated crimes directed against individuals on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability.  Current federal law does not provide sufficient authority for involvement in these cases.

ADL has been a lead advocate for the HCPA and pioneer in advocating for hate crimes legislation since the first ADL model hate crimes statute was drafted almost 30 years ago.  Forty-five states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws based on or similar to the ADL model.