Bill Text: IA SF2120 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: A bill for an act modifying the elements defining hate crimes, and providing penalties. (See SF 2284.)

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-02-11 - Subcommittee, Petersen, Bisignano, and Schneider. S.J. 219. [SF2120 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-SF2120-Introduced.html

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Senate File 2120 - Introduced




                                 SENATE FILE       
                                 BY  McCOY

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act modifying the elements defining hate crimes, and
  2    providing penalties.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 729A.2, Code 2016, is amended to read as
  1  2 follows:
  1  3    729A.2  Violation of individual rights ==== hate crime.
  1  4    1.  As used in this section:
  1  5    a.  "Gender expression" means external manifestations of a
  1  6 person's gender identity, usually expressed through masculine,
  1  7 feminine, or gender=variant behavior.
  1  8    b.  "Gender identity" means a person's internal and personal
  1  9 sense of being male or female regardless of a person's
  1 10 birth=assigned sex.
  1 11    2.  "Hate crime" means one of the following public offenses
  1 12 when committed against a person or a person's property because
  1 13 of the person's race, color, religion, ancestry, national
  1 14 origin, political affiliation, gender identity, gender
  1 15 expression, sex, sexual orientation, age, or disability, or the
  1 16 person's association with a person of a certain race, color,
  1 17 religion, ancestry, national origin, political affiliation,
  1 18 gender identity, gender expression, sex, sexual orientation,
  1 19 age, or disability:
  1 20    1.  a.  Assault in violation of individual rights under
  1 21 section 708.2C.
  1 22    2.  b.  Violations of individual rights under section 712.9.
  1 23    3.  c.  Criminal mischief in violation of individual rights
  1 24 under section 716.6A.
  1 25    4.  d.  Trespass in violation of individual rights under
  1 26 section 716.8, subsections 3 and 4.
  1 27                           EXPLANATION
  1 28 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  1 29 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  1 30    This bill includes additional, alternative elements defining
  1 31 the various offenses labeled as hate crimes.
  1 32    The bill amends Code section 729A.2 by modifying a "hate
  1 33 crime" to include offenses committed against a person or
  1 34 person's property because of the person's gender identity or
  1 35 gender expression or because of the person's association with a
  2  1 person of a certain gender identity or gender expression.
  2  2    The bill defines "gender identity" to mean a person's
  2  3 internal and personal sense of being male or female regardless
  2  4 of a person's birth=assigned sex.  The bill defines "gender
  2  5 expression" to mean external manifestations of a person's
  2  6 gender identity, usually expressed through masculine, feminine,
  2  7 or gender=variant behavior.
  2  8    If a person commits an offenses classified as a hate crime
  2  9 under the bill against a person or person's property because
  2 10 of the person's gender identity or gender expression or
  2 11 because of the person's association with a person of a certain
  2 12 gender identity or gender expression, the person commits one
  2 13 of the following criminal offenses: assault in violation of
  2 14 individual rights under Code section 708.2C; violations of
  2 15 individual rights under Code section 712.9; criminal mischief
  2 16 in violation of individual rights under Code section 716.6A; or
  2 17 trespass in violation of individual rights under Code section
  2 18 716.8(3) and (4).
  2 19    The penalty for a person who commits a hate crime classified
  2 20 as an assault in violation of individual rights under Code
  2 21 section 708.2C ranges from a serious misdemeanor to a class "D"
  2 22 felony depending on the circumstances of the offense.
  2 23    The penalty for a person who commits a hate crime that is
  2 24 a violation of individual rights under Code section 712.9 is
  2 25 reclassified and punished as an offense one degree higher than
  2 26 the underlying offense, resulting in the following punishments:
  2 27 for violations of Code sections 712.3 (arson in the second
  2 28 degree) punishable as a class "B" felony, 712.4 (arson in the
  2 29 third degree) punishable as a class "D" felony, 715.5 (reckless
  2 30 use of fire or explosives) punishable as an aggravated
  2 31 misdemeanor, 712.6 (explosive or incendiary materials or
  2 32 devices) punishable from an aggravated misdemeanor to a class
  2 33 "B" felony, 712.7 (false reports) punishable as a class "C"
  2 34 felony, or 712.8 (threats) punishable as a class "C" felony.
  2 35    The penalty for a person who commits a hate crime that is
  3  1 criminal mischief in violation of individual rights under Code
  3  2 section 716.6A is reclassified and punished as an offense one
  3  3 degree higher than the underlying offense, resulting in the
  3  4 following punishments: for violations of Code section 716.5
  3  5 (criminal mischief in the third degree) punishable as a class
  3  6 "D" felony, and 716.6 (criminal mischief in the fourth or fifth
  3  7 degrees) punishable as an aggravated misdemeanor or serious
  3  8 misdemeanor, respectively.
  3  9    The penalty for a person who commits a hate crime that is a
  3 10 trespass in violation of individual rights under Code section
  3 11 716.8(3) is a serious misdemeanor and a person who commits a
  3 12 hate crime that is a trespass in violation of individual rights
  3 13 under Code section 716.8(4) commits an aggravated misdemeanor.
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