Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed a bill that provides police officers with greater legal protections, a move that has been argued as misguided and goes against the nationwide attempts to make law enforcement officers more responsible for their actions. 

House Bill 838 defines a new crime: bias-motivated intimidation, which refers to committing an act that results in the death, or severe bodily harm of a police officer, firefighter, or emergency medical technician. The offense also applies to any damage over $500 done to property owned by the police. 

The law also permits police officers to bring complaints against an individual, company, or association regarding violating the officer’s civil rights while conducting official duties or to combat intentionally false reports against them.

The offense is punishable by jail sentences of up to 5 years and a fine of up to $5,000. The measure states that the sentence must be stacked upon every other criminal record, that each offense must be classified as a separate crime, and sentences cannot be served simultaneously. Violations such as vandalism directed at police officers could lead to longer sentences.

With this being said, the question up for debate is: should Georgia classify law enforcement as a group that can be affected by hate crimes?