What is a Hate Crime
?
A “Hate Crime” in Nevada is a crime that is committed against a person
because of that person’s race, color, religion, national origin, physical
or mental disability, or sexual orientation. A hate crime can also be committed
if the attacker believes that the victim is in one of these groups, even if the
victim actually isn’t. For example, if a victim is attacked because
the attacker thought that he/she had a different sexual orientation, the law
would consider that a hate crime, even if the victim was actually not of a different
sexual orientation.
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Is it a Hate Crime to Belong to a Gang?
While simply belonging to a gang is not a crime or a hate crime
all by itself, the laws in Nevada do punish some gang activity
like they punish hate crimes. For example, the law requires
a court to double the punishment for a felony if that felony
was committed with the specific intent to promote or assist
criminal gang activity. (NRS 193.168) The law also
requires the court to deny probation to a person convicted
of a “gang crime,” meaning that the person
must go to prison instead of trying to live out in the community
on probation. Additionally, a person on parole in the
adult prison system can legally be denied permission to live
or associate with anyone who is a known gang member.( NRS 213.1263). Schools
are also given the ability under Nevada law to prohibit gang
activity by restricting gang clothing or symbols, and also
restricting “any activity that encourages participation
in a criminal gang or facilitates illegal acts of a criminal
gang.” (NRS 392.4635).
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How is a Hate Crime Punished in Nevada?
The laws in Nevada do not specify hate crimes with specific penalties. Instead,
Nevada law enhances the penalties for certain crimes if the crime occurred primarily
because of the protected status of that victim. This means that a crime’s
penalty is increased if the reason for the crime is that the victim was a minority,
disabled, or of a different sexual orientation. Depending on the
original penalty available, a hate crime enhancement can mean an increase in
the category of crime, or an increase in the amount of time a person can be sent
to prison for such a crime.
First, minor crimes that are usually punished as a misdemeanor (maximum 6 months
jail and/or a $1,000.00 fine) may be increased to a Gross Misdemeanor (maximum
12 months jail and/or a $2,000.00 fine, with formal probation available). Examples
of these offenses would include harassment, destruction of property, trespassing
with intent to damage property, disturbing the peace or stalking. (See
NRS 207.185)
Second, more serious felony crimes like kidnapping, robbery or sexual assault
will have increased penalties if the jury finds that the person committed his
crime because of the victim’s minority status. (See NRS 193.1675) The
law allows the court to impose a sentence that is up to 25% higher than the original
penalty. Thus, a 10-year maximum sentence could become 12 ½ years.
Finally, Nevada takes hate crimes so seriously that a murder can become a death
penalty case if it is found that the murder was based on any of the factors that
have been discussed above. (See NRS 200.003)
A misdemeanor offense that often involves younger offenders is graffiti or tagging. While
usually punished as a misdemeanor, if that graffiti is done on a church or other
house of worship, a school or a cemetery, that crime can be punished as a gross
misdemeanor. The law also requires the court to order “restitution” or
money payments to the victim to pay for the damage caused to the property. (See
NRS 206.125) |
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