Orrin Hatch: “I decry what happened in the Matthew Shepard case. I decry what happened in the James Byrd case. Those horrific crimes…”

“I decry what happened in the Matthew Shepard case. I decry what happened in the James Byrd case. Those horrific crimes, however, were investigated by local authorities and prosecuted by local prosecutors. In both instances, the local prosecutors obtained appropriate sentences--life terms in the case of the Shepard defendants and death sentences in the case of the Byrd defendants. Local law enforcement and local prosecutors did their jobs and investigated and prosecuted truly awful hate crimes. All of these horrible examples of hate crimes were handled properly by State and local authorities. That is why my amendment is strongly supported by the National District Attorneys Association, the major organization that represents State and local prosecutors throughout the country. The National District Attorneys Association has endorsed my amendment because State and local prosecutors believe that the assistance offered in my amendment would be very helpful to them as they seek to fight hate-motivated crime.”