NCJ Number
211793
Date Published
2005
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses the unique challenges posed to the British criminal justice system in responding to offenders who have committed hate-motivated crimes.
Abstract
Great Britain's 1998 Crime and Disorder Act--later amended by the Anti-Terrorism, Crime, and Security Act of 2001--provides for additional penalties for nine pre-existing offenses when it can be proved that those offenses were racially or religiously motivated or aggravated in whole or in part. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 allows for homophobic motivation as well as bias against disability to be aggravating factors that can increase sentence severity. This chapter argues that the prison system and traditional community punishment are relatively ineffective in reforming hate-motivated behavior. The author advises that for most hate-motivated offenders, community sentences that simultaneously punish the crime and challenge the offender's erroneous belief systems have greater potential for modifying hate-motivated behavior. In reinforcing these recommendations, the chapter explores some of the distinctive characteristics and dynamics of hate crimes, followed by the identification of key limitations of traditional custodial and community sentences. The author then examines recent developments in programs designed for hate-motivated behavior. The author cautions, however, that innovative community sentences, although holding the greatest promise for modifying hate-motivated behavior, are not a panacea, because of the complex, persistent, and embedded nature of hate and prejudice. 1 table and 21 references