In Oregon, a Murder Conviction Adds to Calls for Tougher Hate Crime Punishments

The New York Times - published April 26, 2019

By Adeel Hassan

Natasha and Larnell Bruce Sr. listened to testimony describing their son’s death during the trial of Russell Courtier in Portland, Ore.CreditCreditJohn Rudoff/Sipa USA, via Associated Press Images

A white supremacist who deliberately plowed his Jeep into a black teenager was sentenced last week to at least 28 years in prison for what is believed to be Oregon’s first hate crime murder conviction in more than three decades. He could have faced as much as five additional years in prison if not for an unusual quirk in Oregon law, which imposes softer penalties on anyone who commits a hate crime alone rather than with an accomplice.

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