Punishment For Hate Crimes
Crimes distinguished by motive of the criminal behind committing the crime fall under a different class called the Hate crimes. These types of crime may be driven by prejudice towards race, ethnicity, disability, religion or sexual orientation and the punishment for these crimes is usually harsher than the crime itself in order to de-motivate these motivations. Hate cases pose an extremely tough challenge to even the finest lawyers and the criminal may end up getting lifetime imprisonment or death penalty based on the crime committed. |
Based on preconception hate crimes may be categorized under three different categories -- Property based destruction, Murder or assault of any individual or Expression of threats. Rarely though sometimes hate crimes may be categorized under felony crime category.
Probationary sentences, fines, incarnation and death sentences may be given to hate crime perpetrators. The duration of and the punishment type depends on the crime details like history of the culprit, criminal record, individual intent and the number of victims involved. In Washington, the minimum penalty for hate crime is $500 and imprisonment for at least 5 day for each crime. Also, the minimum fine and prison sentence cannot be revoked, deferred or suspended in case of hate crimes in Washington. Similar provisions for hate crimes are present in other states.
Anyone who willingly injured interfered or intimidated another person or tried doing so by force for reasons like color, race, national origin or color when the victim engaged in any of the federally protected doings like schooling, patronize a public facility, apply for employment, act as juror in state court or vote can be given federal prosecution as per Federal Civil Rights Law of 1964. People violating Federal Hate Crime Law of 1969 can get fined or imprisoned up to a year and sometimes both. In case of bodily injury of victim or usage of fire, firearms or explosives, the culprit will receive 10 years of imprisonment, while in cases of sexual assault, murder or kidnapping, the culprit may get life imprisonment or even death penalty.
District Courts of America provide sanctions for criminal only. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 confined a setting up at 42 U.S.C. § 13981 which let victims of hate crimes motivated by gender seek compensatory and disciplinary damages, and also declaratory relief. In addition, the victims may also get other forms of compensation as seen appropriate by the court. However, the US Supreme Court passed a ruling in the US vs Morrison case that this form of compensation was illegal.
The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, needs the US Sentencing Commission to raise the punishments for committed hate crimes based on perceived or actual race, religion, color, national origin, gender or ethnicity of people. The Sentencing Commission executed guidelines that applied to federal crimes in the year 1995.
President Obama on 28th October 2009 signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. This act ensures that hate crime due to a person’s perceived or actual race, religion, color, national origin, gender or ethnicity of people, sexual orientation and/or disability would be treated as a federal crime and punished accordingly. Also, the act has done away with the precondition that the victim should be indulging in an activity protected by the federal law at the time of the crime.
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Punishment For Hate Crimes
Hate crimes refer to any crimes committed because the perpetrator(s) have a prejudice or bias. For instance, deliberately assaulting a disabled person is considered as a hate crime. These crimes have been in existence for centuries, but in was only in the 1970s that people became aware of these crimes. In fact, the US is one of the many nations that has several laws making hate crimes into criminal offenses. 
