ISSUE 2: CRIME

Dick Durbin thinks that there should be more funding and stricter sentencing for hate crimes. Durbin has voted multiple times to add sexual orientation to the definition of what constitutes a hate crime.

Should a crime committed against one type of person carry a different sentence as a similar crime committed against a different kind of person? If a racist kills a person of a different race, should his/her sentence be harder than the sentence of someone who kills out of jealousy? If a crime is committed against someone who is gay, should the prosecution of that crime be more forceful than the prosecution of a crime against someone who is straight? Dick Durbin thinks so.

On the other hand, if a crime is committed against multiple people, shouldn't each offense count as a different crime? Dick Durbin doesn't think so. Durbin voted against criminal penalties for harming a fetus when committing another crime. Maybe Dick Durbin doesn't think a fetus deserves consideration. But try telling the mother whose child dies in the womb because of some thug's vicious behavior that the loss of that life doesn't deserve to be prosecuted.

Dick Durbin: Wrong on crime.