Louisiana enacted a new law Thursday to make it a hate crime to attack police officers. Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards signed the Blue Lives Matter bill Thursday afternoon, adding police to the list of protected categories under hate crime law such as race and religion. Louisiana law adds an additional five years in prison and $5,000 in fines for an offense against one of the listed groups, which now includes cops, firefighters, and EMS personnel.
The overarching message is that hate crimes will not be tolerated in Louisiana, Edwards said.
The bill easily passed the states legislature. It amends current Louisiana law to read:
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