On the recordSeptember 13, 2000
I have heard these very powerful testimonials from all Members, including my colleague, the gentleman from Missouri, who spoke at the beginning in favor of Mr. Conyers' motion. I, too, have held the hands of family members who have been murdered, the mothers and wives as we waited for juries to return with their verdicts, and wondering whether or not the State's cases prevail and often they did. But I agree also with the gentlewoman from Wisconsin. My experience has shown that all murder cases are hate crimes, and what I think we are attempting to do today is really legislate by headline. The fact that the tragedy that occurred to the Matthew Shephard family, the killers of Matthew Shephard deserve, in my estimation, the death penalty not because of who he is or what sexual preference he had, but because the facts fit the case.
Source
govinfo.gov
