Attack on reservist could inspire new hate crime law

ATLANTA - The case of a black female Army reservist who police say was beaten by a white man in front of her 7-year-old daughter could renew the call for a hate crime law in Georgia.

The state is one of five without a hate crime law on the books after the Georgia Supreme Court in 2004 struck down legislation passed four years earlier, ruling it "unconstitutionally vague." Advocates lobbying for a new law have been met with opposition, but Tashawnea Hill's beating could be a rallying cry in the upcoming legislative session.

Groups like the Anti-Defamation League and state NAACP have pointed to the incident as proof such a law is needed in the state.

"A crime motivated by hatred toward a race or a religion is a crime against the entire community," said Bill Nigut, the ADL's Southeast regional director. "We now, once again, have a dramatic reminder of what hatred compels some people to do and the violence that hatred can cause."

The Justice Department's civil rights division in Washington has initiated a probe into Hill's case. Police say Hill was kicked and punched Sept. 9 as Troy D. West screamed racial slurs outside a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Morrow, about 15 miles southeast of Atlanta. Authorities say West, 47, became enraged when Hill told him to be careful after he nearly hit her daughter while opening the restaurant's door.

West faces misdemeanor state charges, though investigators have referred the case to federal authorities - their only recourse for stiffer penalties if West is convicted.

Racist hate groups have grown in the w

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