No. HB 1117
Filed under Criminal Justice.
Offenses Evidencing Prejudice; Expands grounds for reclassification of offenses to include acts based on gender or gender identity of any person; specifies that reclassification must occur if offense was based in whole or in part on specified characteristics of any person; provides that it is essential element of certain offense that defendant perceived, knew, or had reasonable grounds to know or perceive that person was included in certain class of person; specifies that reclassification of certain offense must occur if offense was based in whole or in part on disability of any person; reclassifies certain offenses committed against person with disability; expands data Governor is required to collect & disseminate to include specified incidents.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDThe bill adds gender and gender identity to the list of protected traits that trigger automatic penalty upgrades for any crime. It also adds disability to the list of traits that trigger upgrades under a separate statute.
It changes the trigger from prejudice based entirely on a trait to prejudice based on the trait in whole or in part. This means a crime motivated by multiple factors, including a protected trait, now qualifies for a higher penalty.
It replaces the old, narrower definition of disability with a broader one. The new definition covers any physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities, rather than only specific conditions like developmental disabilities or mental illness.
It requires the Department of Law Enforcement to collect and publish data on hate crimes based on gender, gender identity, and disability, in addition to the traits already tracked.
AIIncreases the severity of penalties for crimes motivated by prejudice against a broader range of protected characteristics.
AIAdds gender identity as a protected characteristic for hate crime reclassification and defines the term.
AIBroadens the definition of disability for hate crime reclassification to include any physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities.
AIRequires reclassification if the offense was based in whole or in part on the protected characteristic, rather than requiring it to be the sole basis.
AIRequires the Department of Law Enforcement to collect and disseminate data on hate crimes based on gender and disability in addition to existing categories.