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Florida House adds homeless to hate crimes law

Despite one state representative calling the homeless ?bums,? the Florida House has passed a bill that would add the homeless to the state?s hate crime law.

Sponsored by Rep. Ari Porth, D-Coral Springs, the measure (HB 11) passed 80-28.

?Nobody is more vulnerable,? Porth said. ?If the sole reason you beat them was because they were homeless and sleeping on a bench then that deserves extra protection.?

Referring to the homeless as ?bums,? Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, was among those in opposition.

?The bill is creating a new protected class of people based on the fact that they?re not voters, they?re not taxpayers and they live on the streets,? he said.

An identical bill, SB 506, is headed for the Senate floor.

Read the Orlando Sentinel report here.

Full post as published by the 13th juror on April 20, 2010 (boomark / email).