25 Feb State Commission to Study Hate Crime Sentencing Enhancements

The California Commission on the State of Hate met virtually Thursday. (Screenshot captured by Samantha Kennedy / The CC Pulse)

By Samantha Kennedy

California’s Commission on the State of Hate will target hate online and in person by conducting new research and creating an anti-harassment program for businesses.

Commissioner Shirin Sinnar on Thursday said her subcommittee on data and research will facilitate research into online hate and the effectiveness of hate crime enhancements, of which she said little has been done.

“We know very little actually of the impacts of hate crime enhancements,” said Sinnar, who is also a professor at Stanford Law School. “There’s not been a lot of data or evidence on almost any question related to their effectiveness.”

A hate crime sentencing enhancement adds additional time to a sentence if it is proven that an individual’s motivation to commit the crime is at least partly due to certain characteristics of a victim, including race, religion or sexual orientation. Characteristics don’t have to actually apply to a victim for the enhancement; an individual must only believe they apply to the victim.

>>>Read: What Is the Difference Between a Hate Crime and a Hate Incident?

Sinnar hopes the research into hate crime enhancements will identify what is unknown and be able to fill those gaps. The research, which will include a literature review of existing research into non-law enforcement interventions, is expected to help inform recommendations the commissioners will make in their annual report.

Commissioner Brian Levin, who founded the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, said though data into hate crimes and their enhancements is lacking, certain interventions by law enforcement have proved effective in reducing hate crimes. Levin said that more research into hate crimes should be done before making any public recommendations.

Sentencing enhancements, including those that target crimes involving firearms and gangs, add time to a sentence and disproportionately impact Black and Brown individuals, which some commissioners mentioned.

“We really have to be careful not to conflate the very reasonable and proper understanding of sentence enhancements in general versus sentence enhancements which are rarely used,” Levin said.

An essay coauthored by Sinnar in 2020 explored what she called the “complicated views of the community” at the meeting by examining alternative approaches to hate crime enhancements. Some of those alternatives, according to the essay, could be reforms to victim compensation programs or restorative justice practices.

In the community, she said groups have “both a lot of distrust with the criminal justice system, policing, prisons and other traditional approaches, but also, within certain communities, a sense that historically they have been underprotected.”

One way the Civil Rights Department of California, which the commission is part of, is trying to build trust in communities is by making them feel safe at private businesses.

Assistant Deputy Director of Outreach and Education Lily Harvey announced at the meeting that the “Welcome In” pilot program will provide online training to businesses in California to be recognized as harassment-free spaces.

“The idea is to have customer service representatives learn more about what hate and harassment in businesses look like,” she said, “and sort of feel seen and validated in the complicated, sometimes really important role they play.”

In 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill that allowed the program to begin. The program is required to start before 2025, and Harvey said the hope is to begin the program over the summer.