A Sikh civil rights organization called on law enforcement Tuesday to investigate whether a former FedEx employee who fatally shot eight people -- four of them Sikhs -- at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis last week had any ties to hate groups.

The shots were fired into the Masjid-E-Noor mosque Sunday night, narrowly missing worshippers inside who had concluded a sunset prayer.

Hate crimes bills of the last few sessions included the phrase "gender identity" on the list of protected characteristics.

Previous attempts to pass legislation that increases the penalties for hate crimes have failed at the statehouse. But Senate Democrats listed it as one of their priorities again this year and House Speaker Brian Bosma endorsed the idea of such legislation in the wake of white supremacist violence over the summer.

Republican leaders in both the House and Senate say it's the other chamber that controls the fate of the bias crimes bill in the 2018 session.

Indiana Senate Democrats will push for several ideas in the 2018 legislative session they've tried to advance before.

The legislation would create an automatic enhancement - making misdemeanors felonies and raising each felony one level.