MUNCIE, Ind. -- The brutal murders of a gay man in Wyoming and an African-American man in Texas earlier this year are forcing many states to expand or add anti-hate crimes laws, says a Ball State University educator.

Special interest groups are pushing for anti-bias crimes legislation to allow judges to add or expand penalties against convicted felons, said Bryan Byers, a criminal justice professor. He is working with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission to compile data on hate crimes.

"You have to remember that nothing will stop all hate crimes," he said. "All we can hope for is that a law would help change behavior as well as attitudes. Look what civil rights legislation has done in both of these areas after 30 years."

A hate crime is defined as any criminal act that can be shown to be motivated due to the perpetrator's real or perceived belief that the victim belongs to a group which the perpetrator does not like or has a bias against.

Byers said a hate crime law gives prosecutors and judges the flexibility to prosecute the crime based on this special classification and judges the ability to add additional penalties.

"The first reason to have such a law is to send an important message to society about our intolerance for bias-motivated behavior," he said. "If such laws are well written and enforced, we give criminal justice authorities the clout they need in cases involving bias crimes."

FBI statistics show 7,947 hate crime incidents were reported in 1995 to more than 9,500 law enforcement agencies in 45 states.

The purpose of a hate crime law is to protect everyone -- especially those individuals belonging to minority groups, Byers said.

"Hate crime is based on real or perceived group membership," he said. "For example, a person who may behave in a feminine manner may or may not be gay but could be a victim. A white person who dates a black could also be a victim. Another way such laws protect everyone is the fact that they provide an extra layer of law intended to produce "civil order" and "civil behavior."

Byers believes that special interest groups will increase attempts to have hate crimes legislation introduced in states without such rules. The states include Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, New Mexico, South Carolina and Wyoming. Texas has a hate crimes law that is virtually unenforceable.