(Leah Hogsten | Tribune file photo) l-r Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City, celebrates the initial approval of his hate crimes bill with Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill and Sen. Derek Kitchen, D-Salt Lake City. Thatcher's SB103 bill would allow judges to increase penalties for a crime if a defendant is convicted of targeting someone based on ancestry, disability, ethnicity, gender identity, national origin, race, religion or sexual orientation. A person must first be convicted of a crime before additional penalties would apply. There have been no successful convictions under the state's current hate crimes law.
Bethany began covering state government at The Tribune right in time for the 2018 election. She's a proud Maryland Terrapin and worked at newspapers in the D.C. area and in Orlando, Florida, before coming to Utah. Her aspiration is to one day keep an orchid alive for more than a month.