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Hate Crimes by State
Data Collection Efforts: The Hate Crime
Statistics Act
Summary of Hate Crime Statistics,
2002
February 19, 1999 Alabama
Billy Jack Gaither, a gay man, was abducted, beaten to death with an
ax handle, and set afire on burning tires in a remote area.
February 6, 2000 Arizona
20-year old University of Arizona student was sitting at a
café when a man came up behind him and punched and stabbed him
with a large knife, saying he had killed a "f---ing faggot." Victim
was treated at a local hospital and released.
November 18, 1998 Arkansas
James Ward, 37, was stabbed to death in his home. An 18-year old male
who was charged with the crime, claimed that Ward had made two sexual
advances toward him.
January 14, 1999 Arkansas
Yitzak Abba Marta was sentenced to life in prison without parole for
the 1996 beating and strangulation of a transvestite.
August 1, 2000 California
An individual charged with the murder of four women – one of
which was a 16-year old girl – Yosemite National Park told
police investigators that he had fantasized about killing women for
three decades.
March 12, 1999 California
A 35-year old Latino male pleaded guilty to murder for the
strangulation killings of five gay men in 1986 and 1989.
April 13, 1999 California
Reported Skinheads allegedly kidnapped a black man and etched a
swastika into his chest with a piece of glass.
May 1, 1999 California
An 18-year old male and three juveniles were convicted of violent
hate crimes in connection with a racially motivated assault on a
Hispanic man in March.
July 18, 1999 California
Two transgendered women were attacked by three men who beat them with
aluminum baseball bats while yelling anti-gay epithets. One of the
victims required hospitalization for a head injury.
March 15, 1999 Colorado
A 25-year old Denver skinhead was convicted of murder and attempted
murder and sentence to life in prison for the 1997 shooting death of
a West African immigrant at a bus stop and the wounding of a
bystander.
March 15, 1999 Darien Connecticut
A white man was convicted of intimidation by bigotry or bias and
second-degree assault and placed on two years of special probation
for a 1996 racially motivated attack on a black man.
January 21, 1999 Washington D.C.
A 30-year old man was charged with a hate crime and assault with a
dangerous weapon for allegedly hitting a black man with a nightstick
and refusing to serve him at a restaurant in October.
February 24, 1999 Ft. Lauderdale Florida
A black woman, Jody-Gaye Bailey, died after being shot in the head by
a self-proclaimed skinhead. Minutes before the shooting the
perpetrator reportedly boasted of wanting to “go out and kill a
n---er.”
April 3, 1999 St. Petersburg Florida
Ashley Mance, a 6-year-old black youth, was killed by one of 12
rounds fired from a self-proclaimed skinhead.
October 31, 1999 Iverness Florida
After shouting anti-gay epithets, a teenager allegedly drove into a
group of young people dressed in drag on Halloween night, killing
17-year-old Allison Decratel and injuring another person.
May 1, 2000 Jacksonville Florida
Two of five men accused in the beating death of a mentally retarded
man went on trial in what is being called a racially motivated
killing.
August 1, 1998 Honolulu Hawaii
A straight man was killed in a public shower facility by a group of
teenagers because they thought he was gay.
November 23, 1998 Huntley Illinois
A man was sentenced to life in prison for the 1996 hate motivated
murder of a gay man.
May 24, 1999 Fall River Illinois
Four black men were charged with attempted murder and civil rights
violations for allegedly shooting a white teenager.
July 4, 1999 Illinois
A White Supremacist killed an African-American man, Ricky Byrdsong,
and wounded six orthodox Jews in Chicago before killing a Korean
student, Won-Joon Yoon, in Bloomington, IN
April 5, 1999 Crystal Lake Illinois
Naoki Kamijima, 48, was a Japanese American shop owner shot to death
in this city outside of Chicago. The gunman was allegedly searching
stores for employees of certain ethnicities before finding and
shooting Kamijima.
April 5, 1999 Gurnee Illinois
A 24-year old was convicted of assault and disorderly conduct for
committing a hate crime when he threatened a biracial couple outside
a grocery store in February. In May he was sentenced to one year in
prison.
May 5, 1999 Chicago Illinois
A 28-year old was sentenced to 12 years in prison for a racially
motivated attack in 1997 when he intentionally ran over a black man
with his utility vehicle after spitting on him and hurling racial
insults.
July 4, 1999 Indiana
A White Supremacist killed an African-American man, Ricky Byrdsong,
and wounded six orthodox Jews in Chicago before killing a Korean
student, Won-Joon Yoon, in Bloomington, IN
October 29, 1999 Indianapolis Indiana
Three men, one of which has since been charged, broke into the home
of two men and, convinced the men were homosexuals, burned and
repeatedly kicked the victims, taunting them with homophobic remarks
during the attack.
November 23, 1999 Elkhart Indiana
Two white teenagers were charged with murder in what prosecutors say
was the racially motivated random shooting of a black teenager.
June 4, 1999 Fort Dodge Iowa
A 21-year old was charged with assault and violation of individual
rights in connection with a racially motivated beating in May.
September 1, 1999 Wichita Kansas
Three men were sentenced for hate crime convictions resulting from a
1994 attack on a black man in a bar.
November 7, 1999 Lawrence Kansas
Two heterosexual men, one a student at Kansas University, were
walking down the street when some men directed anti-gay epithets at
them and proceeded to attack them. One of the victims was knocked to
the ground and repeatedly beaten.
May 20, 1999 Baton Rouge Louisiana
A reported Klansman aged 22 was charged with aggravated rape, oral
sexual batter and crime against nature for allegedly raping a black
man in 1997.
July 31, 1998 Falmouth Maine
A 39-year old male was charged with terrorizing, violating a
protective order and disorderly conduct for allegedly threatening to
kill and behead two lesbian neighbors.
August 25, 1998 Tremont Maine
A male was arrested for allegedly taunting a man with anti-gay slurs
and throwing rocks at him.
January 20, 1999 Alfred Maine
A 47-year old male was convicted of hate crime assault for assaulting
his neighbor in March because he believed the man was gay.
March 18, 1999 Alfred Maine
A 25-year old male pleaded guilty to burglary, assault and a bail
violation and was sentenced to 18 months in prison for his
participation in a racially motivated attack on an Asian family in
August.
May 18, 1999 Portland Maine
A 39-year old was charged with reckless conduct with a dangerous
weapon after he allegedly used racial epithets and threw bricks at a
biracial family.
July 13, 1999 Portland Maine
A self-proclaimed Klansman pleaded guilty to attempted murder and was
sentenced to three years in prison and four years of probation for a
racially motivated attack on a black police officer in September.
August 13, 1999 Portland Maine
A white youth allegedly yelled racial slurs and assaulted a Somalian
woman in June. A permanent restraining order was sought against the
teen.
December 7, 1999 Chestertown Maryland
A 73-year-old black woman was murdered when she was driving home from
a Christmas shopping trip with two relatives after a pick-up truck
with two people in it began following them, honking their horns and
flashing their lights.
April 25, 2000 Germantown Maryland
A lesbian woman, who along with her partner had been the targets of
repeated anti-gay slurs and vandalism, was attacked by a grown man
and his 12-year old son.
May 15, 2000 Suitland Maryland
The second body of a male-to-female transgendered person to be
murdered in the D.C.
June 1, 2000 Baltimore Maryland
A 25-year old male plead guilty to first-degree murder, attempted
murder and armed robbery after admitting that he murdered a gay man
and tried to kill another because, he told police, he thought gay men
were "evil."
December 18, 1998 Providence Massachusetts
Two men were charged with a hate crime for allegedly assaulting a gay
man and yelling anti-gay slurs outside of a bar in November.
November 7, 1998 Easton Massachusetts
An Easton teenager threw a large rock at a 17 year old boy he thought
was gay, kicked him in the head and yelled, swore, and called the
victim a “fag.” The victim suffered a broken nose and a
concussion.
January 7, 1999 Fall River Massachusetts
Four adults and three juveniles allegedly threw bricks, rocks and
table legs while yelling racial insults at a group of
Cambodian-American children in May
January 25, 1999 Taunton Massachusetts
A 27-year old was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to
life without the possibility of parole for the fatal 1996 stabbing of
a man whom he believed to be gay.
June 6, 1999 Greenfield Massachusetts
Two prep students, ages 18 and 20, were charged with allegedly using
a knife to carve anti-gay slurs into another student's back because
he was a fan of Queen, which the perpetrators referred to as the "gay
band."
August 10, 1999 New Bedford Massachusetts
A 21-year old was sentenced to three years in prison, and Scott
Oliveira, 19, was sentenced to two years in jail for a May 1998
racially motivated attack on a group of Cambodian youths.
October 21, 1999 Boston Massachusetts
Two males pleaded guilty to assault and battery, civil rights
violations and destruction of property in a 1997 attack on their
Hispanic neighbors.
January 28, 2000 Boston Massachusetts
A group of high school teenagers sexually assaulted and attacked a
16-year-old Boston High School student on the subway because she was
holding hands with another young girl, a common custom from her
native African country.
May 17, 2000 Holbrook Massachusetts
A grand jury indicted a 17-year-old high school student on seven
charges for attacking a fellow student he believed to be gay. For
five months prior to the attack, the perpetrator allegedly harassed
the victim.
October 7, 1998 Traverse City Michigan
Two males were charged with aggravated assault for allegedly
attacking a gay man and yelling anti-gay expletives.
January 20, 1999 Pontiac Michigan
Two white high school students and two black high school students
were suspended after a fight that occurred because the two white
students allegedly used racial slurs.
February 24, 1999 Saline Michigan
Three white high school students were charged with ethnic
intimidation in connection with a December hallway fight with two
black students.
March 19, 1999 Traverse City Michigan
A male was convicted of assault and battery for assaulting a gay man
in October.
March 22, 1999 Pontiac Michigan
A 45-year old male was convicted of ethnic intimidation, assault and
using a firearm in the commission of a felony for threatening a man
with a shotgun and uttering a racial epithet in 1998.
September 17, 1999 Grand Rapids Michigan
A 30-year-old white man was charged with ethnic intimidation and
assault with the intent to commit murder for allegedly beating a
black man, running over him with his car and dragging him 50
feet.
February 4, 2000 Wayne County Michigan
A 15-year-old boy was convicted of manslaughter for killing Alexander
Charles, a 16-year-old schoolmate the previous May. The perpetrator
told investigators that he was angry at Charles, possibly over an
unwanted sexual advance.
November 21, 1999 Maple Grove Minnesota
Two 21-year-old men were charged with a hate crime after attacking a
woman they perceived to be a lesbian in a “road rage”
incident. The men allegedly pushed the woman and called her a lesbian
and then later attacked her.
January 12, 1999 Parsippany New Jersey
A 38-year old male was charged with simple assault with bias
motivation after he allegedly provoked an attack by calling his black
co-worker a racial epithet.
April 16, 1999 Paterson New Jersey
Two males were placed on five years of probation for their
participation in a 1997 racially motivated assault of a Chinese
man.
February 25, 1999 Hackensack New Jersey
Two males were convicted of aggravated assault and riot and two
others were convicted of simple assault and riot for the 1997
racially charged beating of a Chinese man.
January 15, 2000 Elmwood New Jersey
After days of anti-gay taunts and threats a 16-year old gay student
at Memorial High School was beaten by a classmate. The teen's face
was bruised and cut from being tackled and repeatedly punched in the
face and body.
June 10, 2000 Albequerque New Mexico
Participants in a gay pride parade were run down by a man in a
minivan yelling obscenities. One victim was hit twice in the knees
and thrown off the hood. The perpetrator tried to swerve into the
crowd, which included small children.
September 2, 1998 New York New York
Three men allegedly assaulted two men they believed to be gay.
January 28, 1999 Westhampton New York
A 28-year-old white man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the
1996 racially motivated beating of a black man outside a
nightclub.
March 20, 1999 Woodside New York
Two women were charged with assault and aggravated harassment after
they allegedly attacked an Asian youth and yelled racial insults.
September 1, 1999 Yaphank New York
Three white people were arrested after they allegedly attacked a
black man and his two white friends after the group entered a bar
filled with white patrons.
January 26, 1999 Winston-Salem North Carolina
A black man was convicted of robbery with a dangerous weapon for the
racially motivated robbery of two Hispanic men a year earlier.
April 10, 1999 Winston-Salem North Carolina
Three white men were arrested after they allegedly attacked a black
man and yelled racial slurs.
April 24, 1999 Winston-Salem North Carolina
A 21-year old was charged with assault for the purpose of ethnic
intimidation and injury to real property for allegedly assaulting a
black man and damaging his car because of the man's race.
February 1, 1999 Toledo Ohio
Three white men were charged with felonious assault for allegedly
stomping a white man. Two of the accused claim to be Skinheads.
May 4, 1999 Youngstown Ohio
Self-proclaimed Aryan Nations and Klan members were involved in a
fight in which they directed racial slurs and threats towards black
customers at a store.
May 15, 1999 Harrison Ohio
A 28-year-old white man, was charged with ethnic intimidation after
he allegedly made insulting comments to a black man and spit in his
face after a confrontation at a softball game.
January 19, 2000 Columbus Ohio
Scott Roberts, a gay man, told the Columbus Dispatch that he believes
he and his partner of six years, Bill Camelin, were attacked because
they are gay. Camelin was shot to death in the attack, and Roberts
was wounded in the knee.
February 2, 1999 Salem Oregon
Four males were charged with intimidation for allegedly assaulting a
security guard because he is black.
February 11, 1999 Tillamook Oregon
Two males were charged with intimidation and assault for allegedly
beating a man because of his sexual orientation.
November 5, 1999 Corvallis Oregon
A 38-year old was charged with aggravated murder for allegedly
beating a Hispanic man to death.
September 23, 1998 Bridgeport Pennsylvania
A 30-year old male was charged for allegedly making anti-gay threats
and assaulting a lesbian outside a bar in August.
January 18, 1999 Hatfield Pennsylvania
Two white males and a white female allegedly assaulted two men of
Indian descent and shouted racial slurs.
January 29, 1999 Bethel Park Pennsylvania
A white man allegedly threatened three white youths and two black
youths with racial slurs and hit one youth with a brick.
February 2, 1999 Philadelphia Pennsylvania
Two 20-year old males were convicted of aggravated assault for
attacking a gay psychiatrist.
April 29, 2000 Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
A 34-year old white man who proclaimed to resent non-Europeans, was
charged with murder and hate crimes in a shooting rampage targeting
minorities that left five dead and one critically wounded.
February 13, 1999 Pawtucket Rhode Island
A 45-year old was charged with assault with a deadly weapon for
allegedly hitting a man with a bottle while yelling anti-gay
slurs.
September 19, 1999 Providence Rhode Island
A group of men shouting anti-homosexual slurs allegedly assaulted
five gay men.
June 23, 1999 Columbia South Carolina
Two former members of the Christian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan were
sentenced for shooting three black people outside a nightclub in
1996.
March 3, 1999 Columbia South Carolina
A former Christian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan member was sentenced
to 26 years in prison for his role in a nightclub shooting that
wounded three black teens in 1996.
January 17, 1999 Texas City Texas
Two black gay men, Laaron Morris and Kevin Tryals, were shot to death
and one of the men was left inside a burning car.
February 5, 1999 Houston Texas
A white librarian allegedly dragged an elementary student across a
floor while using a racial slur.
February 16, 1999 Houston Texas
A 59-year old male was convicted of assault and sentenced to a year
in jail for partially blinding a man in October because he believed
the man to be gay.
May 13, 1999 Littleton Texas
A 39-year old was charged with ethnic intimidation, attempted
vehicular assault and possession of explosives after he allegedly
tried to torch a mosque.
June 7, 1998 Jasper Texas
James Byrd Jr. was chained to a pick-up truck and dragged to his
death on a backwoods road in a racially motivated attack.
March 1, 2000 Salt Lake City Utah
Two people outside a gay bar were beaten and three others terrorized.
The perpetrators later yelled anti-gay slurs and threw beer bottles
at another car that had two men in it.
May 23, 2000 Salt Lake City Utah
Police are investigating whether a 19-year-old woman working for the
Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance was beaten and robbed because her
attackers presumed she was a lesbian.
January 29, 1999 Independence Virginia
A 38-year old male was sentenced to life in prison and fined $100,000
for his role in the 1997 death of a black man who was beheaded and
burned.
March 1, 1999 Richmond Virginia
A gay, homeless man was killed and his severed head was left atop a
footbridge in James River Park near a popular meeting place for gay
men.
November 6, 1998 Seattle Washington
A gay man was severely beaten with rocks and broken bottles in his
neighborhood by a gang of youths shouting “faggot.” The
victim sustained a broken nose and swollen jaw.
February 4, 1999 Spokane Washington
A reported Skinhead was charged with assault for allegedly beating a
black man in January.
February 1, 1999 Spokane Washington
A 32-year old white man pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced
to one year in jail with all but five days suspended service for
making racially motivated threats to a black man in March.
February 2, 1999 Pulaski Wisconsin
Three males pleaded guilty to battery for kicking and beating a black
man while yelling racial slurs.
May 16, 1999 Kenosha Wisconsin
A white man allegedly swerved his car intentionally and sped toward
two black teens as they rode their bicycles along a sidewalk.
January 11, 1999 Antigo Wisconsin
A 19-year old was sentenced to 30 days in jail with work release,
fined $500 and placed on one year of probation after entering a plea
agreement for attacking a black man in 1997 and using a racial
slur.
May 1, 1999 Kenosha Wisconsin
A 27-year-old man intentionally swerved his car onto a sidewalk to
run over two African-American teens on bicycles. After hitting the
two cyclists, he left the scene and kept driving until stopped by
police.
July 21, 1999 Waupaca Wisconsin
Two 18-year olds were charged with a hate crime for allegedly chasing
down a black family with their car, yelling racial slurs and throwing
bottles at the family.
August 12, 1998 Laramie Wyoming
Matthew Shepard, an openly gay 21-year old University of Wyoming
student, was savagely beaten, tortured, tied to a wooden fence in a
remote area and left to die in freezing temperatures.
Data Collection Efforts: The Hate Crime
Statistics Act
(HCSA)2 requires the U.S. Department of Justice to acquire data on crimes that "manifest prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnicity" from law enforcement agencies across the country and to publish an annual summary of the findings. The HCSA has increased public awareness of the problem and sparked improvements in the local response of the criminal justice system to hate violence.
On November 12, 2003, the FBI released its most recent annual report, "Hate Crime Statistics 2002"3, which reported:
Clearly these hate crime numbers do not speak for themselves. Behind each of these statistics is an individual or a community targeted for violence for no other reason than race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnicity. American communities have learned the hard way that failure to address bias crimes can cause an isolated incident to fester and result in widespread tension.
However, studies by the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) and others have revealed that some of the most likely targets of hate violence are the least likely to report these crimes to the police.4 In addition to cultural and language barriers, some immigrant victims, for example, fear reprisals or deportation if incidents are reported. Many new Americans come from countries in which residents would never call the police, especially if they were in trouble.5 Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender victims, facing hostility, discrimination, and, possibly family pressures because of their sexual orientation or identity, may also be reluctant to come forward to report these crimes.6 These issues present a critical challenge for improving law enforcement response to hate violence. When police departments implement the HCSA in partnership with community-based groups, the effort should enhance police-community relations.
The study of crime begins with the knowledge of oneself. - Henry Miller
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