51.   His attorney, Karolyn Kovtun, said an appeal has been filed challenging the use of the hate crime law.

52.   Mueller said such attacks violate U.S. hate crime laws and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Justice Department will aggressively investigate and prosecute any violations.

53.   On Friday, the NAACP National Voter Fund said it would run ads critical of Texas Gov. Bush for not supporting an enhanced hate crimes law in the state.

54.   Rich Tafel, executive director, said hate crime laws would be decided by President Bush and Congress.

55.   President Clinton appealed on Friday for an expanded national hate crimes law that would offer specific protections to homosexuals.

56.   Texas already has a hate crimes law, but it does not list specific groups that are protected.

57.   The Bush administration has not taken a position on expanding hate crime laws.

58.   The original Senate bill refers to a hate crime law that protects homosexuals, among others.

59.   The state of Texas has a hate crimes law, he said.

60.   The topic of expanding hate crime laws came up, said Tucker, but she declined to provide details about the discussions.