Bipolar disorder, which used to be called manic depressive illness or manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by wide mood swings from high (manic) to low (depressed). Periods of high or irritable mood are called manic episodes.
James Byrd, Jr. was not engaged in a federally-protected activity when he was lynched and killed. The Matthew Shepard Act expanded the 1969 Federal Hate Crime Law to cover these and other types of brutal murders.
H.R. 1913 (111th): Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. The text of the bill below is as of Apr 30, 2009 (Referred to Senate Committee). To provide Federal assistance to States, local jurisdictions, and Indian tribes to prosecute hate crimes, and for other purposes. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. 2. Definition of hate crime. In this Actâ (1) the term crime of violence has the meaning given that term in section 16, title 18, United States Code; (2) the term hate crime has the meaning given such term in section 280003(a) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (28 U.S.C. 994 note); and (3) the term local means a county, city, town, township, parish, village, or other general purpose political subdivision of a State. 3.