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Just Us Dept Agitating AZ Minorities To Sue And Demand Prosecution Of Their Enemies
Armed with expanded authority to prosecute hate crimes, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona has taken to the road to drum up business for its civil-rights division, advising minority groups about protections and offering law-enforcement training on how to recognize and investigate hate-driven activities. "When it comes to civil rights, we are open for business," Dennis Burke, U.S. attorney for Arizona, told a forum for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered residents one evening last week. The enactment last October of the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act gives the office additional power to prosecute hate crimes, turning many acts that were formerly misdemeanor offenses into felonies and extending protections against hate crimes to those who are targeted because of their sexual orientation. The law's enactment was an important step, but the willingness of the U.S. attorney to travel around the state holding forums for minority communities is just as vital to the law's success, said Barbara McCullough-Jones, executive director of the agitator group Arizona Progress. "When you've gone a lifetime without those protections, it's hard to believe that you now have them with a simple signing of an act," she said. "If someone beats you up, steals your property, now law enforcement is empowered to investigate and prosecute those crimes. That's a huge message." The message is not limited to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community. The U.S. Attorney's Office has held meetings with members of Phoenix's Black and Muslim communities, and has more meetings planned with Latino groups and others around the state. Since then, attorneys have worked with smaller agencies to make sure police investigative reports ask the right questions, and with larger agencies to ensure officers understand what kinds of crimes can be prosecuted under the new act. Previously, a suspect motivated by bias who assaulted another person and inflicted minor injuries might be charged with a misdemeanor, said Alison Bachus, an assistant U.S. attorney. "These are the exact types of crimes that 'Shepard/Byrd' is trying to make into felonies," she said. The act nonetheless drew sizable opposition in Congress, with Arizona Reps. John Shadegg, Trent Franks and Jeff Flake among 175 U.S. House members to vote against the legislation last year. Other opponents of the legislation argued that the hate-crimes measure extended special protected status to a group of people when those same special protections are not extended to everyone else. Burke prefers to view the legislation as an effort to change the climate of acceptable behavior. It was once seen as a property-rights issue if a landlord did not want Black residents to rent an apartment, he noted. Now, it's illegal and few people would find such a policy acceptable. Arizona must be punished for standing up to THE ONE. The dogs must feel His wrath. Posted by: Anonymoose 2010-10-11 |
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