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Committee backs sentencing enhancement for crimes committed while concealing face after split debate
Summary
The House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee voted 8–7 to send HB 489 to the floor. Supporters said a one-year, up to $2,500 enhancement will deter masked crimes; opponents warned the bill is vague and could be unevenly enforced.
The House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee voted 8–7 to send House Bill 489 to the floor after a lengthy hearing that split lawmakers, law enforcement and faith and civil-liberty advocates.
Representative Paul Hall, sponsor of HB 489, told the committee the measure is “a common-sense measure to support our victims” that gives prosecutors and judges an optional sentencing tool. “It allows for up to an additional one year of imprisonment, enhancement for jail or prison and up to a $2,500 additional fine when the facts of the case warrant it,” he said.
Law-enforcement witnesses urged passage. Lieutenant Jason Kimble of the Nampa Police Department said disguises make identification harder and can escalate violence: “When criminals cover over their face, they believe they are invisible.” Sheriff Andy Creech of Payette County said the enhancement is a practical deterrent for offenders who conceal their identity to evade accountability.
Opponents warned the bill’s language is broad and risks uneven application. The Reverend Sarah Lawal, representing the Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, said she voted against the bill because of “the breadth and the vagueness of how ‘mask’ is defined and whether it could be applied unevenly or even weaponized intentionally or not against peaceful civilians exercising their freedom of conscience and peaceful assembly.”
Committee members pressed the sponsor about intent and scope. Representative Scott and others asked whether the bill differentiates between serious violent offenses and low-level misdemeanors; Hall and several backers said the enhancement is discretionary and tied to an underlying conviction, not a standalone offense.
After public testimony from law-enforcement officials and dozens of citizens representing a range of views, committee members debated amendments and substitutes. Representative Scott offered a substitute to send the bill to amending order, which failed 6–9; the original motion to send HB 489 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation passed 8–7.
The committee’s action sends HB 489 to the full House for further debate and possible amendment.
