What is a Hate Crime?
California has a separate law that punishes anyone who commits a hate crime. A hate crime is a criminal act conducted because of ill will directed towards a specific group of people. To be convicted of a hate crime, you must also commit an underlying criminal act, such as an assault.
Hate crime laws do not police someone’s thoughts or beliefs because that would be unconstitutional under the First Amendment. Instead, hate crime laws punish crimes committed due to hateful intentions.
Characteristics That Form the Basis of a Hate Crime Convictions
Committing a criminal act because you believed someone else was a part of a protected group of people you have hatred towards is a hate crime.
The characteristics protected by hate crime laws in California include:
- Disability
- Gender
- Nationality, race, or ethnicity
- Religion
- Sexual orientation
To be convicted of a hate crime, you must believe someone had these characteristics, even if you were wrong. For example, if you hit someone because you think they are Canadian and hate Canadians, you can be convicted of a hate crime even if it turns out the person was Norwegian.
Hatred Must Form the Basis of Why You Acted
Vandalizing your neighbors’ house because you hate them for throwing loud parties every weekend is not a hate crime. It is still a crime, but you would not be punished under California’s hate crime law.
On the other hand, vandalizing your neighbors’ house because they are lesbians and you hate homosexuality is a hate crime. The difference is in why you committed the crime. Sexual orientation is one of the characteristics that can be the basis for a hate crime charge. For a prosecutor to convict you of a hate crime, they must prove that you were biased against the victim and that your bias is why you committed the crime.
A hate crime can be committed for various reasons, so long as your bias is a substantial reason you committed the crime. In the vandalizing your neighbors’ house example, maybe you are upset they held a loud party until the early morning yesterday. While the party may have been the triggering incident, if your hatred towards homosexuality was the main reason you vandalized their house, you may have committed a hate crime.
A Hate Crime Enhances the Punishment Received
A hate crime can be punished as a separate misdemeanor in California.
Possible consequences of a conviction include:
- Up to a year in county jail
- A $5,000 fine
- Up to 400 hours of mandatory community service
- Misdemeanor probation
Because a hate crime charge requires an underlying crime to be committed, it is atypical to only be charged and convicted of the hate crime itself. Hate crime laws in California allow significant enhancements to penalties for other crimes committed in conjunction with a hate crime. The enhanced punishments could lead to your conviction requiring imprisonment in state prison instead of county jail or extra years added to a sentence.
If you face criminal charges for a hate crime in Newport Beach, California, call the experienced criminal defense attorneys at The Chambers Law Firm at 714-760-4088 or send us an email at dchambers@clfca.com. We have years of experience defending the rights of people charged with hate crimes and other California criminal offenses, and we can provide you with the legal support you need.
