Hate Crimes: State Statutes and Contacts: New Jersey - North Dakota

This guide is meant to summarize state statutes relating to hate crimes.  In addition to the state statutes listed, there are relevant federal statutes:

•  Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, H.R. 3355, Pub.L. 103–322, Sec. 280003 108 Stat. 1796, 2096 provides for enhanced sentencing for hate crimes, defined as "a crime in which the defendant intentionally selects a victim, or in the case of a property crime, the property that is the object of the crime, because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation of any person." 
•  Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA), 18 USC § 249
• For more on federal statutes, see Congressional Research Service Report R47060, Overview of Federal Hate Crime Laws    

The Southern Poverty Law Center has a reporting form for hate incidents.

The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association has resources including a reporting form for hate incidents and hate crimes toolkits in 25 languages.

Alison M. Smith and Cassandra L. Foley, State Statutes Governing Hate Crimes, Congressional Research Service Report RL33099 (Sept. 28, 2010) served as an invaluable resource for this guide.  

For UCLA Law users, Westlaw has a treatise on Hate Crimes Law by Zachary J. Wolfe  (login and password required).

State specific information from the federal Department of Justice (hate crimes home page).

The Movement Advancement Project maintains a list of which state hate crimes statutes include sexual orientation and gender identity.

Hate crimes laws:

• N.J. Rev. Stat. § 2C:16-1: bias crimes (bias intimidation) statute 
  • Declared unconstitutional by State v. Pomianek, 221 N.J. 66 (2015)
  • Many bills have been proposed to amend the statute, the bills introduced in 2022 include:
    • 2022 AB 772
    • 2022 AB 842
    • 2022 AB 1084
    • 2022 AB 1463
    • 2022 AB 1622
    • 2022 AB 2652
    • 2022 AB 3474
• N.J. Rev. Stat. § 2C:33-9: crime of desecration of venerated objects
• N.J. Rev. Stat. § 2C:33-11: crime of defacing or damaging certain property, including "property primarily used for religious...purposes"
• N.J. Rev. Stat. § 52:9DD-9: duties of the Human Relations Council, which includes collection of data on hate crimes and "develop[ing] policy proposals for the State and assist with coordinating efforts to promote prejudice reduction and prevent and deter crimes based upon the victim's race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or physical, mental or cognitive disability" 

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Newark
Claremont Tower
11 Centre Place
Newark, NJ 07102
Phone: (973) 792-3000

State Attorney General’s Offices + Other State Resources
Office of the Attorney General 
Headquarters
Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex (HJC)
8th Floor, West Wing
25 Market Street
Trenton, NJ 08625-0080

Bias Crime Unit
Phone for individuals who feel they are targets of bias crime: 1-800-277-BIAS (2427)

Hate crimes laws:

• N.M. Stat. Ann. § 30-15-4: crime of desecration of a church
• N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-18B-3: enhanced penalties for crimes "motivated by hate"
• N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-18B-4: requires collection of data on hate crimes
• N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-18B-5: requires training for law enforcement officers about hate crimes

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Albuquerque
4200 Luecking Park Ave NE
Albuquerque, NM 87107
Phone: (505) 889-1300

State Attorney General’s Offices + Other State Resources
Office of the Attorney General

Santa Fe Office
408 Galisteo Street
Villagra Building
Santa Fe, NM 87501
Phone: (505) 827-6000

Albuquerque Office
111 Lomas NW, Ste 300
Albuquerque, NM 87102
Phone: (505) 222-9000

Las Cruces Office
201 N. Church St., Ste. 315
Las Cruces, NM 88001
Phone: (575) 526-2280

Crime Victim Services
Phone: 505-827-6948

Hate crimes laws:

• N.Y. Penal Law  § 485.05: hate crime defined as commission of certain crimes when the defendant " intentionally selects the person against whom the offense is committed or intended to be committed in whole or in substantial part because of a belief or perception regarding the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct, or" "intentionally commits the act or acts constituting the offense in whole or in substantial part because of a belief or perception regarding the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct."
• N.Y. Penal Law  § 485.10: enhanced sentencing for hate crimes
• N.Y. Penal Law  § 240.31: felony of aggravated harassment " because of a belief or perception regarding such person's race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation, regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct", includes display of a swastika or noose
• N.Y. Penal Law  § 240.70: misdemeanor criminal interference with health care services or religious worship
• N.Y. Penal Law  § 240.71: felony criminal interference with health care services or religious worship
• N.Y. Exec. Law § 837 4-c: requires collection of data on hate crimes, aggregated data to be made public starting in June 2022.

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:

NY state reporting hotline for those that have experienced bias and discrimination: 1-888-392-3644 

New York City hate crimes hotline:  212-335-3100

FBI Field Offices
FBI Albany
200 McCarty Avenue
Albany, NY 12209
Phone: (518) 465-7551

FBI Buffalo 
One FBI Plaza
Buffalo, NY 14202
Phone: (716) 856-7800

FBI New York
26 Federal Plaza, 23rd Floor
New York, NY 10278-0004
Phone: (212) 384-1000
Press Office: (212) 384-2100

State Attorney General’s Offices + Other State Resources
Office of the Attorney General
The Capitol
Albany, NY 12224-0341
General Helpline: 1-800-771-7755

Victims Rights & Resources
120 Broadway
New York, New York 10271
Phone: (212) 416-8839

Executive Offices:
New York City Office
120 Broadway
New York City, NY 10271-0332
Phone: (212) 416-8000

Regional Offices:

Binghamton Regional Office 
State Office Building, 17th Floor
44 Hawley Street
Binghamton, NY 13901
Phone: 607-721-8771

Brooklyn Regional Office 
55 Hanson Place, Suite 1080
Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: (718) 722-3949

Buffalo Regional Office 
Main Place Tower, Suite 300A
350 Main Street
Buffalo, New York 14202
Phone: (716)853-8400
Fax: (716)853-8571

Harlem Regional Office 
163 West 125th Street, Suite 1324
New York, N.Y. 10027
Phone: (212) 961-4475

Nassau Regional Office 
200 Old Country Road, Suite 240,
Mineola, NY 11501
Phone: 516-248-3302, 516-248-3300

Plattsburgh Regional Office
43 Durkee Street, Suite 700
Plattsburgh, NY 12901
Phone: (518) 562-3288

Poughkeepsie Regional Office 
New York State Attorney General
One Civic Center Plaza – Suite 401
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601-3157
Phone: (845) 485-3900

Rochester Regional Office 
144 Exchange Boulevard
Rochester, NY 14614-2176
Phone: 585-546-7430

Suffolk Regional Office 
300 Motor Parkway, Suite 230
Hauppauge, NY 11788
Phone: 631-231-2424

Syracuse Regional Office 
615 Erie Boulevard West, Suite 102
Syracuse, NY 13204
Phone: (315) 448-4800

Utica Regional Office 
207 Genesee Street, Room 508
Utica, NY 13501
Phone: (315) 793-2225

Watertown Regional Office 
Dulles State Office Building
317 Washington Street
Watertown, NY 13601
Phone: (315) 785-2444

Westchester Regional Office
44 South Broadway
White Plains, NY 10601
Phone: (914) 422-8755

Hate crimes laws:

• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-3: enhanced penalties for misdemeanors "committed because of the victim's race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin"
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-12.14: "It shall be unlawful for any person or persons, while wearing a mask, hood or device whereby the person, face or voice is disguised so as to conceal the identity of the wearer, to place or cause to be placed at or in any place in the State any exhibit of any kind whatsoever, with the intention of intimidating any person or persons, or of preventing them from doing any act which is lawful, or of causing them to do any act which is unlawful. For the purposes of this section, the term “exhibit” includes items such as a noose."
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-401.14: misdemeanor "If a person shall, because of race, color, religion, nationality, or country of origin, assault another person, or damage or deface the property of another person, or threaten to do any such act"
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-49(b1): felony to "willfully and maliciously damages, aids, counsels, or procures the damaging of any church, chapel, synagogue, mosque, masjid, or other building of worship by the use of any explosive or incendiary device or material"
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-62.2: felony of burning "any church, chapel, or meetinghouse"
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-144: crime of damaging certain buildings, including churches

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Charlotte
7915 Microsoft Way
Charlotte, NC 28273
Phone: (704) 672-6100

State Attorney General’s Office
Office of the Attorney General
9001 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-9001
Phone: (919) 716-6400

Hate crimes laws:

• N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-14-04: misdemeanor to interfere "with another because of his sex, race, color, religion, or national origin and because he is or has been exercising or attempting to exercise his right to full and equal enjoyment of any facility open to the public."
• N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-21-01: arson, including against an " inhabited structure"
• N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-21-02: endangering by fire or explosion, including against an "inhabited structure"
• N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-21-08: "inhabited structure" includes "Where people assemble for purposes of...religion"

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Minneapolis (Serves North Dakota)
1501 Freeway Boulevard
Brooklyn Center, MN 55430
Phone: (763) 569-8000

State Attorney General’s Office
Office of the Attorney General
State Capitol
600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept. 125
Bismarck, ND 58505
Phone: (701) 328-2210
Phone (TTY): (800) 366-6888