Hate Crimes: State Statutes and Contacts: Ohio - Rhode Island

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:

• Ohio Rev. Stat. Ann. § 2927.11: Misdemeanor to desecrate certain property, including places of worship.
• Ohio Rev. Stat. Ann. § 2927.12: enhanced penalties for certain crimes if a defendant chooses a victim "by reason of the race, color, religion, or national origin of another person or group of persons"

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Offices
FBI Cincinnati
2012 Ronald Reagan Drive
Cincinnati, OH 45236
Phone: (513) 421-4310

FBI Cleveland
Federal Office Building
1501 Lakeside Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
Phone: (216) 522-1400

State Attorney General’s Office
Office of the Attorney General
30 E. Broad St., 14th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215
Phone (Toll-Free): 800-282-0515
Phone (Local): 614-466-4986

Hate crimes laws:

• Oklahoma Stat. tit. 21 § 850: crime of malicious harassment based on a victim's "race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin or disability"; also requires the state to collect data on hate crimes
• Oklahoma Stat. tit. 21 § 1174: felony to burn a cross with intent to intimidate 
• Oklahoma Stat. tit. 21 § 1765: felony to deface, break, or "otherwise injure" a place of worship or items therein

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Oklahoma City
3301 West Memorial Road
Oklahoma City, OK 73134-7098
Phone: (405) 290-7770

State Attorney General’s Office
Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office
313 NE 21st Street
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
Oklahoma City:  (405) 521-3921
Tulsa:  (918) 581-2885
 

Hate crimes laws:

• Or. Rev. Stat. § 166.075: misdemeanor to "intentionally abus[e] a public monument or structure, a place of worship or the national or state flag"
• Or. Rev. Stat. § 166.155: Criminal act of intimidation in the second degree; committing certain acts based on the defendant's "perception of the other's race, color, religion, sexual orientation, disability or national origin"
• Or. Rev. Stat. § 166.165: Criminal act of intimidation in the first degree; same acts as intimidation in the second degree done by two or more persons
• Or. Rev. Stat. § 181A.225: requires the state police to collect data on hate crimes
• Or. Rev. Stat. § 181A.470:Requires training for law enforcement officers about hate crimes

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Portland
9109 NE Cascades Parkway
Portland, OR 97220
Phone: (503) 224-4181

State Attorney General’s Office + Other State Resources
Oregon Department of Justice
1162 Court Street NE
Salem, OR 97301-4096
Phone: (503) 378-4400

Oregon DOJ page on Bias and Hate

Non-Emergency Bias Response Hotline: 1-844-924-BIAS (1-844-924-2427)

Hate Crime Report Form
Please Note: This form is intended to inform the Oregon Department of Justice about potential hate crimes. This is not a substitute for filing a police report with a federal, state or local law enforcement agency.

Hate crimes laws:

• 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 2710: Criminal act of intimidation when a defendant commits other crimes "with malicious intention toward the race, color, religion or national origin of another individual or group of individuals"
• 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 3307: criminal act of vandalism against certain places, including places of worship
• 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 5509:criminal act of desecration of certain places and their contents, including places of worship
• 71 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 250(i): requires the state police to collect data on hate crimes
• 37 Pa. Admin. Code Ch. 53: requires collection of data on ethnic intimidation

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Offices
FBI Philadelphia
William J. Green, Jr. Building
600 Arch Street, 8th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 418-4000

FBI Pittsburgh
3311 East Carson Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
Phone: (412) 432-4000

State Attorney General’s Office
Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
16th Floor, Strawberry Square
Harrisburg, PA 17120
Phone: 717-787-3391

Hate crimes laws:

• R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-44-31: criminal act of injuring certain places and their contents, including places of worship
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 12-19-38: enhanced penalties when a defendant "intentionally selected the person against whom the offense is committed or selected the property that is damaged or otherwise affected by the offense because of the actor's hatred or animus toward the actual or perceived disability, religion, color, race, national origin or ancestry, sexual orientation, or gender:
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-28-46: requires the state police to collect data on hate crimes
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-28.2-8.1: Requires training for law enforcement officers about hate crimes

Where to report hate crimes, in addition to local police:
FBI Field Office
FBI Boston (Serves Rhode Island)
One Center Plaza, Suite 600
Boston, MA 02108
Phone: (617) 742-5533

State Attorney General’s Offices
Office of the Attorney General
150 South Main Street
Providence, RI 02903
Phone: (401) 274-4400

Regional Offices:
Noel Judicial Complex
(Kent County Courthouse)
222 Quaker Lane
Warwick, RI 02886
Phone: (401) 822-2710

Licht Judicial Complex
(Providence County Courthouse)
Licht Judicial Complex
250 Benefit Street, 2nd Floor
Providence, RI 02903
Phone: (401) 274-4400

Newport County Courthouse Office
Florence Murray Judicial Complex
Eisenhower Square
Newport, RI 02840
Phone: (401) 841-8310

Washington County Courthouse Office
McGrath Judicial Complex
4800 Tower Hill Road
Wakefield, RI 02879
Phone: (401) 782-4150