Report Crimes in the US

Report Crimes in the US

When we as a society think of the crimes in America we most often think of murder, rape, and robbery. The idea that these crimes exist is enough for most people to believe, the world is unfair and evil is present. But have you ever stopped to think what motivates this people to commit these types of crimes. The FBI's uniform crime report breaks down the types of crimes committed within the U.S, in their report that 2,025 law enforcement agencies reported 7,624 hate crimes (hate crime statistic, 2007). Some people may be thinking that hate crime is not a real problem, but to the people or groups that are victims, hate crimes are real and a terrifying problem. The February 12, 2008 shooting of Larry King, a fifteen year old student in California, is just one example of the reality of hate crimes. Lawrence King was shot twice in the head in the middle of his computer lab class with 24 other students present (The New York Times). Larry King was brain dead and taken off life support on February 14th, 2008. The question may be why the attorneys in this case are charging a fellow classmate with hate motivated murder? The reason for the charge of a hate crime is because Larry was gay.

The FBI defines a hate crime as a” criminal offense that are motivated, in whole or in part, by the offenders bias against a race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity/ national origin, or disability and are committed against persons, property, or society.” The FBI compiles their annual Hate Crimes Statics with information collect from law enforcement agencies from every state. The law enforcement agency reports are made up of 11 types of offenses that are bias motivated. The crimes ...