Comments on Advance Indiana™: Arson Investigation Points Up Two Problems With Indiana Law

"I hate white people and hope they get killed""I h...

2007-06-12T12:42:00.000-05:00

"I hate white people and hope they get killed"

"I hate Asians and hope they get killed"

"I hate gays and hope they get killed"

None of those phrases are against the law in the rest of the US, where hate crime statutes actually exist.

If you're going to argue that hate crime laws limit free speech, you're taking some bizarre approach that committing a violent felony is equivalent to protected speech.

hate crimes laws are anti-free speech

2007-06-12T10:53:00.000-05:00

hate crimes laws are anti-free speech

is this subject matter too complex for wilson to c...

2007-06-12T08:40:00.000-05:00

is this subject matter too complex for wilson to comment? I know it is for me!

In these instances, it seems like the offense may ...

2007-06-12T07:44:00.000-05:00

In these instances, it seems like the offense may only be a "B" felony. The structure burned must be valued at over $5000 for the offense to be a class B felony. Given that these were all abandoned garages that were burned, they may well have been worth less than $5000 each. This would mean 13 counts of a class D felony; given that sentences typically run concurrently, the arsonist very well may only spend one year in prison.

I'm sorry but arson is already a serious felony wh...

2007-06-12T07:25:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry but arson is already a serious felony which can result in extremely lengthy prison sentences. I see no evidence that arsons can't be prosecuted effectively under currently law.