Politics | hate crime Senate Votes to Expand Hate Crime Laws to Gays Five Republicans join in 62-38 vote By Kevin Spak Posted Jul 17, 2009 2:40 PM CDT Copied Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., right, awaits the start of the committee's hearing on hate crimes legislation, Thursday, June 25, 2009, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Harry Hamburg) The Senate has voted to extend hate crime protections to include those attacked because of their gender or sexual orientation, mirroring a similar measure already passed in the House, the Hill reports. Five Republicans, including Olympia Snowe and Dick Lugar, joined all the Democrats present in supporting the bill. Other Republicans opposed the law; Jim DeMint called it “offensive,” saying, “Justice is blind—blind to the superficial circumstances of the victims and the defendants.” Read These Next More details coming out about the last party the Reiners attended. First Australia victims lost their lives confronting the shooter. An MIT nuclear science professor was fatally shot at his home. The Reiners murders and arrest have called attention to a 2015 film. Report an error