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A white supremacist who deliberately plowed his Jeep into a black teenager was sentenced last week to at least 28 years in prison for what is believed to be Oregon’s first hate crime murder conviction in more than three decades. He could have faced as much as five additional years in prison if not for an unusual quirk in Oregon law, which imposes softer penalties on anyone who commits a hate crime alone rather than with an accomplice.

The man, Russell Courtier, 40, was convicted of killing Larnell Bruce Jr., 19, in August 2016. Prosecutors said Mr. Courtier had joined a white supremacist gang while serving a prior prison sentence, and had scuffled with Mr. Bruce before Mr. Courtier’s girlfriend urged him to run down the teenager.

Mr. Courtier was charged with murder and hit-and-run driving. But when prosecutors tried to add a hate crime charge, the court would only allow him to be charged with a misdemeanor hate crime, rather than a felony. A judge ruled that there was not enough evidence that the girlfriend shared the same beliefs, so she would not be considered an accomplice to the hate crime.