List of Cities in NY
Other NY bias crimes Links
| Hate Crimes |
| Hate Crimes - NYS DOJ |
| New York State Penal Code: Hate Crimes Act of 2000 |
| Under the Magnifying Glass: A Dissection of Hate Crime |
Translate:
Bias Crimes
Bias crime also know as Hate crime is a criminal offense against a person or group of persons because of their race, religion, disability, language, nationality, physical appearance, or sexual orientation. The criminal act directed against such persons might include physical violence, bullying, damage to property, harassment, verbal abuse or insults, offensive graffiti or hate mail.
Hate crime laws are meant to deter bias-motivated violence. In the United States, hate crime laws have been upheld by both the Supreme Court and lower courts, especially in the case of 'fighting' words and other violent speech, but they are thought by some people to be in conflict with the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, so they have occasionally been overturned as unconstitutional.