What constitutes a hate crime? What are the penal codes associated with hate crimes? Gang cases can be charged as hate crime enhancements; speech alone may be a basis for hate crime enhancements; misdemeanors can be elevated to felonies; crimes against property; felony vandalism; continuous terror; hate symbols; cross burning; disorderly conduct at a religious service; vandalism at a place of worship; terrorism- use of destructive device or explosive or committion of arson; obstructing exercise of religion

1. CHRISTY HOROWITZ & SANFORD HOROWITZ
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
HOROWITZ LAW
1032 SANTA BARBARA STREET
SANTA BANTA BARBARA, CA 93101
(805) 452-7214
CHRIS@HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
SANDY@HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
WWW.HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
Investigation and Prosecution of
HATE CRIMES

2. New Year’s Eve

3. New Year’s Eve
•Two Gay men left a downtown
bar at 1:45am
•They were attacked by three
men as they walked to their car
•Suspects were white, 20’s,
shaved heads, dark clothing
Suspects shouted bigotry slurs and attacked
the men, Broken Jaw; Severe Head
Lacerations….HOW DO YOU
INVESTIGATE?

4. Can GangCan Gang casescases be charged withbe charged with
Hate Crime enhancements?Hate Crime enhancements?
• YES!.....YES!.....BUTBUT
• Victim’sVictim’s protected statusprotected status must be amust be a
“substantial factor” in the commission of“substantial factor” in the commission of
the offense.the offense.
– Latin Gang fights a Black GangLatin Gang fights a Black Gang
– Drug War over TerritoryDrug War over Territory
• Latin gang member sees black gangLatin gang member sees black gang
member selling dope to a pedestrianmember selling dope to a pedestrian
• Latin gang member says “18Latin gang member says “18thth
Street is LatinStreet is Latin
only. Fuck Bloods, Fuck N___.”only. Fuck Bloods, Fuck N___.”
• Latin gang member shoots Black GangLatin gang member shoots Black Gang
membermember
• Can you charge the Hate CrimeCan you charge the Hate Crime
Enhancement ????Enhancement ????

5. Can Gang cases be charged withCan Gang cases be charged with
Hate Crime enhancements?Hate Crime enhancements?
• Yes, But Not Here.Yes, But Not Here.
• TheThe substantial motivesubstantial motive
was Gang Rivalry andwas Gang Rivalry and
control of the Drug Tradecontrol of the Drug Trade
• NOT VICTIM’S RACENOT VICTIM’S RACE
• ADW but no HateADW but no Hate
Crime EnhancementCrime Enhancement

6. *The White Supremacists saw a carload of African
American youths parked in front of the school
*3 skinheads sprayed the car with bullets and
yelled, “White Power, Fuck N____.”
*Convicted of Attempt Murder AND Hate Crime
Enhancement: PC 422.75(c)

7. Can Gang cases be charged withCan Gang cases be charged with
Hate Crime enhancements?Hate Crime enhancements?
• Hawaiian Gardens in LA County
• Claimed by a Latin gang, “Los
Loguitos.”
• A few black families moved in into
the neighborhood
• 3 gang members saw a 17 year old black
student walking home
•Beating while screaming “Fuck N____. This is
Los Loguitos. Go back to Compton, you Fucking
N_____.”

8. Can Gang cases be charged withCan Gang cases be charged with
Hate Crime enhancements?Hate Crime enhancements?
 “This is Los Loguitos!”
• All defendants were
convicted of Assault
AND Hate Crime
Enhancement: PC
422.75(c)

9. PC 422.6 (misd)
• Use of Force
• Threats
• or Destruction of
Property to
Interfere with
Another’s
Exercise of Civil
Rights

10. Just Speech?
• In a gay
neighborhood in
San Francisco a
bunch of juveniles
taunted a gay man
–“We’re going to kill you; you’re all going to die of
AIDS; We’re going to get you faggots.”
•Speech alone may be the basis for
charging PC 422.6(a)

11. Just Speech?
–“We’re going to kill you; you’re all going to die of
AIDS; We’re going to get you faggots.”
•The gay man slipped on the sidewalk
•The juveniles attacked and kicked him
on the ground until the man lost
consciousness
•Juveniles convicted of Assault and PC
422.6(a) for the threats yelled before the
attack

12. PC 422.6(a)
Speech alone is
enough for PC
422.6(a) if:
The speech itself threatened violence
and the defendant had the apparent
ability to carry out the threat

13. PC 422.6(a)
The threat does not have to be
unconditional or imminent
Contrast to PC 422
422 requires threat resulting in death or
GBI
422.6(a) only requires any threat of
violence

14. PC 422.7
• When the underlying offense was committed for the purpose of
intimidating and interfering with the victim’s free exercise of a civil right
• because of victim’s status and perceived status
• present ability to commit violent injury & caused actual physical injury
– Example: PC 242 – misd
– Add PC 422.7(a) to elevate to a felony
ELEVATE
MISDEMEANOR
CONDUCT TO A
FELONY

15. PC 422.7
• IF the crime committed is a FELONY
(PC 245), don’t allege PC 422.7
• Use hate crime enhancement: PC
422.75 instead
ELEVATE
MISDEMEANOR
CONDUCT TO A
FELONY

16. PC 422.6(b)
No damage or destruction of real property
of another person for the purpose of
intimidating or interfering with the free
exercise or enjoyment of any right
Property of another: Victim does
not need to own the property;
Property includes ownership as
well as possession or occupation

17. PC 422.6(b)
Juveniles defaced public school
property with, “N_____” and “Kill the
N______.”
The area vandalized was associated
with African American students and
teachers

18. PC 422.7(b) - Crimes against
Property > $950
Vandalizing the property of another person because of a
person’s race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin,
disability, gender, or sexual orientation
•PC 422.6(b) – misd hate crime if damage
is less than $950
•PC 422.7(b) – felony hate crime penalty
enhancement > $950
•OR…FELONY VANDALISM

19. FELONY VANDALISM
Vandalizing the property of another person because of a
person’s race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin,
disability, gender, or sexual orientation
PC 594(b) with hate crime enhancement
•PC 422.75(a) if defendant acted alone
(adds 1, 2, or 3 years) or
• PC 422.75(b) if defendant acted with
others (adds 2, 3, or 4 years)

20. HATE SYMBOLS
Placing hate symbols on private property
Any person who places or displays a sign,
mark, symbol, emblem, etc. on private
property without permission for purposes of
terrorizing the owner or in reckless
disregard of the risk of terrorizing the
owner
PC 11411(a) – Terrorizing
(Misd)

21. HATE SYMBOLS
Placing hate symbols on private property
Any person who engages in a pattern of conduct for the
purpose of terrorizing the owner or in reckless disregard of
the risk of terrorizing the owner
places or displays a sign, mark, symbol, emblem, etc. on
private property of another
On two or more occasions
PC 11411(b) – Continuous
Terror (Felony)

22. Continuous Terror
Placing hate symbols on private property
On three different occasions defendant scratched Nazi
Swastikas on the inside wall of the elevator at his
apartment building.
Defendant committed the act because he was anti-
Semitic; he resented the fact that most of the occupants
were Jewish and he wanted to terrorize them
Governor may offer a reward up to $50,000 for info
(PC 1547(a)(13)
PC 11411(b) – Continuous Terror
(Felony)

23. CROSS BURNING
Any person who burns or
PC 11411(c) – Felony
desecrates a cross on private property without
permission for purpose of terrorizing the
owner/occupant or
in reckless disregard of the risk of terrorizing
the owner or
burns, desecrates, or destroys a cross on
school with purpose of terrorizing

24. CROSS BURNING
Can you burn a cross on
your private property?
PC 11411(c) – Felony
YES!
A Klan leader celebrated his
birthday by torching a 30 foot
cross on his front lawn.
Private Property = NO HATE CRIME

25. CROSS BURNING – PC 11411(c)
statute does not violate Free Speech;
cross burning is a “true threat” and
“fighting words”
Claiming to be a practical joke, Defendant
burned a cross on the front lawn of an inter-
racial couple.
The victims were afraid
for their lives and called
police.
Defendant said it wasn’t
racially motivated
Defendant said PC
11411(c) violates his right to
free speech

26. CROSS BURNING – PC 11411(c)
NO INTENT TO TERRORIZE NECESSARY
Defendant only needs to
intend to commit the act
The fact that
the victim is
in fear is
evidence that
the act itself
terrorizes the
victim

27. Disorderly Conduct at a Religious
Service
PC 302(a) (misd)
• Every person who intentionally disturbs any
assemblage of people met for religious worship
at a tax exempt house of worship by:
– Profane discourse, rude or indecent behavior,
unnecessary noise
– either within the place or so near the place as
to disturb

28. PC 302(a) (misd)
• 300 people marched, chanted slogans, and
broke into a Catholic Church during Midnight
Mass on Christmas Eve in 1969
• Banging on doors; screaming, running
throughout the Church; assaulting church goers
with rude behavior and unnecessary noise.

29. Vandalism at a Place of
Worship PC 594.3(a) (misd or felony)
• Any person who knowingly commits any act of vandalism to a
church, synagogue, mosque, temple, building owned and occupied
by a religious educational institution, or other place primarily used
as a place of worship where religious services are regularly
conducted or a cemetery
– Defendants defaced a Catholic Church by writing their gang and
street names on the church wall.
– Defendants were “claiming” their gang territory; not targeting the
building because it was a church
– Defendants pled guilty to PC 594.3(a): statute does not require
the church to be targeted specifically because it is a place of
worship

30. Vandalism at a Place of
Worship PC 594.3(b) (felony)
• Any person who knowingly commits any act of vandalism
to a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, building
owned and occupied by a religious educational
institution, or other place primarily used as a place of
worship where religious services are regularly conducted
or a cemetery
– Which is shown to be a hate crime
– To have been committed for the purpose of
intimidating and deterring people from freely
exercising their religious beliefs
– STRAIGHT FELONY

31. Vandalism at a Place of
Worship PC 594.3(b) (felony)
Defendants entered a
Jewish mortuary
Destroyed numerous
headstones with
Jewish insignias,
names, symbols
Defendants did it
because they are white
supremacists and
hated Jews
GUILTY

32. Vandalism at a Place of
Worship PC 594.3(b) (felony)
• COMMITTED BECAUSE OF THE RACE,
COLOR, RELIGION, OR NATIONAL ORIGIN
OR ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP,
• AND TO HAVE BEEN COMMITTED FOR THE
PURPOSE OF INTIMIDATING AND
DETERRING PERSONS FROM FREELY
EXERCISING RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
• NOTE:NO MENTION OF MISPERCEPTION OF
THOSE TRAITS, DISABILITY, OR SEXUAL
ORIENTATION

33. Threats Obstructing Exercise of Religion
 Any person who, with the intent to cause, attempts to
cause or causes another to refrain from exercising
his or her religion or from engaging in a religious
service
 by means of a threat
 directly communicated to such a person
 to inflict an unlawful injury upon any person or
property
 and it reasonably appears to the recipient of the
threat that such threat could be carried out
PC 11412 (felony)

34. Terrorism – Use of Destructive Device
or Explosive or Commission of Arson
Defendant bombed a gay bar, “Back Door Inn” in
Lancaster.
The explosive device ignited and wounded a
patron
Defendant found guilty of PC 12309, explosion of
a destructive device causing bodily injury
Crime was substantially motivated by Defendant’s
hatred toward the gay and lesbian community
Defendant found guilty of Hate Crime
Enhancement: PC 422.75(b)
PC 11413 (felony)

35. Other Statutes
• Penal Code § 422: Criminal Threats
• Penal Code § 640.2: Writings
• Penal Code § 538(c): Ad into Newspaper
• Penal Code § 653(a) & (b): annoying
telephone calls or text messages

36. Other Enhancements
• Penal Code § 190.2(a)(16): Special
Circumstances for LWOP or Death
• Penal Code § 190.03(a): Special
Circumstances for LWOP

37. Other Enhancements
• Penal Code § 422.75(a): Felony Enhancement
for Hate Crimes
• Penal Code § 422.75(b): Felony in Concert
Enhancement
• Penal Code § 422.75(d): Prior
• Penal Code § 422.7: Aggravating Factors for
Punishment

38. New Year’s Eve
•Two Gay men left a downtown
bar at 1:45am
•They were attacked by three
men as they walked to their car
•Suspects were white, 20’s,
shaved heads, dark clothing
Suspects shouted bigotry slurs and attacked
the men, Broken Jaw; Severe Head
Lacerations….HOW DO YOU
INVESTIGATE?

39. HOW DO YOU INVESTIGATE?
Just like a Gang case or
DV
Reluctant victim?
Record your contacts;
document with photos
Treat as if the victim will
not testify
Was the crime motivated by Hate?

40. Was the crime motivated by Hate?
• Signs, symbols, words
• Graffitti
• Fliers, literature
• Tattoos
• Take photos!
• Check out Facebook, look for suspect and
their friends?

41. Was the crime motivated by Hate?
• Did the suspect commit prior acts of a
similar nature?
• Did the victim suffer prior acts?
• Are victim and suspect members of
different groups?

42. New Year’s Eve
•Two Gay men left a downtown
bar at 1:45am
•They were attacked by three
men as they walked to their car
•Suspects were white, 20’s,
shaved heads, dark clothing
Possible Charges: 242 or 243(b) w/ 422.7 elevator
245 – felony with 422.75(a) or (b) elevator
186.22

43. Resources
(310) 446-4248
(805) 564-6670

44. CHRISTY HOROWITZ & SANFORD HOROWITZ
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
HOROWITZ LAW
1032 SANTA BARBARA STREET
SANTA BANTA BARBARA, CA 93101
(805) 452-7214
CHRIS@HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
SANDY@HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
WWW.HOROWITZFORLAW.COM
Investigation and Prosecution of
HATE CRIMES