COLUMBUS, Ohio — A bipartisan group of Ohio lawmakers has introduced a bill making hate crimes illegal, increasing penalties for assaulting or terrorizing someone based on their race, sex and even political affiliation.
Over the past year, the Statehouse has had to increase security due to upticks in threats against lawmakers.
The FBI charged a New Albany man in May for sending white powder and a bullet to Attorney General Dave Yost. Along with the threats to the state's top cop, the suspect sent powder and violent messages to dozens of other public officials, like Sec. of State Frank LaRose and Treasurer Robert Sprague.
A Dayton man was arrested in July for leaving a threatening voicemail to Congressman Jim Jordan.
Over the past two years, Congresswoman Shontel Brown, Yost and several state lawmakers have been "swatted," with individuals falsely reporting serious crimes occurring at their addresses. This hoax has the goal of sending a large police presence, or a SWAT team, to approach an unsuspecting victim.
But when a man assassinated the Minnesota Speaker of the House and tried to kill other Democratic representatives in June, more troopers were deployed to monitor the Capitol Square area.
"We certainly do get our share of nasty correspondence and the occasional threat of physical violence," state Rep. Tex Fischer (R-Boardman) said.
Fischer joined the legislature in 2024, two years after a man mailed feces to each GOP state senator. He, however, has received threatening voicemails and messages, he said.
"I had one person encourage me to take my own life during the budget process," Fischer said.
A slew of Republicans like him have joined Democrats like Rep. Dontavius Jarrells in cosponsoring House Bill 306. It would prohibit hate crimes and allow victims to take civil action against the perpetrators, potentially resulting in up to $25,000 in fines. The legislation also includes that a threat of violence could include making a false report, which could be in reference to swatting.
WATCH: More about the proposed bill
Jarrells and state Rep. Josh Williams (R-Sylvania) are the primary sponsors and say that state law needs to be updated.
"Our laws don't go far enough in terms of legal recourse when a hate crime does indeed occur, and so that's what started our journey and really looking at our current existing law and saying, 'What can we do to make it better?'" Jarrells said.
Current Ohio law doesn't have a hate crime statute.
Civil rights attorney Jessie Hill explained that the state does have ethnic intimidation, which elevates a crime like menacing from a misdemeanor to a felony if the suspect targets someone based on their "race, color, religion, or national origin."
"This legislation provides much more sweeping protections," Hill said about H.B. 306. "It includes a really broad set of categories that are protected against intimidation or violence."
H.B. 306 creates a new provision, protecting race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, familial status, military status, disability, the person's position in a labor dispute and political affiliation or position.
"One category that is not explicitly protected by this law, and it was kind of surprising to see that it was omitted given how broad this law is, is sexual orientation and sexual identity, gender identity," Hill said.
This bill was a compromise, Jarrells said, but he believes that if someone commits a crime against a member of the LGBTQ+ community, it would fall under the "sex" protection.
"We were able to settle on 'sex' being kind of the umbrella term that covers all the gamut," Jarrells said.
Hill acknowledged that in some cases, the U.S. Supreme Court has included sexual orientation under the sex category. Still, this provides an opening to interpret the law as not necessarily including sexuality or gender, she said.
The lawmakers say the bill makes sure to protect free speech, since someone can only be charged if a perpetrator makes a direct threat, acts in reckless disregard and has the "apparent ability" to carry out violence. The victim must also be afraid that they are in danger.
Hill agreed that this bill, from her reading, does not infringe on the First Amendment the way it is written, and it more closely mirrors federal law than current statute.
"Making sure that we can have that robust, free political discourse without people having to fear for their own safety or their family's safety is really important," Fischer said.
Legislators hope the bill helps lower the political temperature while also showing that threats have consequences.
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