The Utah Legislature won’t pass a good hate crimes bill. The usual excuse for not passing a real hate crimes law is that a hate crimes designation punishes someone’s state of mind, and how can we fairly do that?
News flash to the legislators: We do it all the time. The difference between a murder charge and a manslaughter charge is the state of mind of the perpetrator. The victim is exactly as dead in both cases.
Most criminal laws have various levels of severity based on the actions and statements of the criminal. A swastika painted on a synagogue door is a hate crime.