A draft bill to make targeting police officers a hate crime in Wisconsin is getting national attention Monday.
And, the lawmaker behind it says he expects more states to follow suit.
The so-called "Blue Lives Matter" bill, which will be introduced in January by Republican State Representative David Steffen, is similar to Louisiana's bill--the first state to pass such a law.
It would allow prosecutors to seek stronger punishments against those who specifically target police, firefighters, and EMS crew because of their profession. If passed, a violation could result in an additional five years of prison time, and up to $5,000 in added fines.
And it's release now is a direct response to the police shootings in Dallas. Rep. Steffen says the bill's current draft hit his desk the morning after the tragedy that left five officers dead by sniper fire.
"I immediately called Sheriff Gossage, and said, 'listen, I want to introduce this bill. What do you think?' and he was absolutely supportive, and so we immediately brought it out," says Steffen, after speaking with the media at the Brown Co. Sheriff's Department, "I want to take some advantage of the immediate public awareness that's occurring on this bill."
Rep. Steffen says less than 10 percent of all draft legislation actually becomes law.
"Less than 10% of all pieces of legislation actually become law," says Steffen. "This is one that is so important, I want to make sure it's in that... 10%... So, I wanted to accelerate the timeline, start bringing awareness, getting legislators on board now."
"A lot of times we'll get some negative press regarding things that are happening within the community," says Brown Co. Sheriff John Gossage, "and this is just one step towards showing support for law enforcement."
But some admit mending tensions between police and protestors takes more than the threat of harsher punishments.
"We do need to reach out to the community leaders," says Gossage, "work with them, and do whatever we can to try to minimize this divisiveness between law enforcement and the community."
"I hope that folks will be open-minded about this bill," adds Rep. Steffen, "and fully understand that there is not any effort to downplay, or diminish, anything else that's going on."
Meanwhile, some groups feel the definition of "hate crime" should not be extended to professions. Instead, activists say the term should stay reserved for a victim's race, religion, color, or disability.
Steffen also says several other states are currently looking into similar legislation.
