Creators: The State Must Be Bound by Its Word

Matthew T. Mangino
Creators
December 3, 2024

The Illinois Supreme Court recently overturned Jussie Smollett's conviction for falsely portraying himself to police as the victim of a hate crime. The decision evokes comparison to Pennsylvania's high court ruling vacating actor and comedian Bill Cosby's 2018 sexual assault conviction.

While the crimes and history of criminal conduct are very different, there are similarities that should make practitioners of criminal law take heed. In both cases, ambitious prosecutors using the notoriety of the accused breached their obligation to follow the law and protect the due process rights of the accused.

Cosby was investigated by the Montgomery County District Attorney's office in 2005 for the alleged sexual assault of Andrea Constand. The then-District Attorney Bruce Castor, a lawyer who later defended President-elect Donald Trump during his second impeachment trial, found "insufficient, credible and admissible evidence exists upon which any charge against Mr. Cosby could be sustained beyond a reasonable doubt."

In an unusual move, Castor filed a civil lawsuit against Cosby on behalf of Constand. If Cosby sat for a deposition in the civil case and told the truth, Castor agreed not to prosecute him.

Cosby testified in the civil case without invoking his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. He admitted to taking women to his Montgomery County home, drugging them and sexually assaulting them. The civil suit was settled.

Castor's campaign opponent in 2015, Kevin Steele, made the Cosby prosecution a campaign issue. In the final weeks of their campaigns, according to The Guardian, Castor and Steele ran attack ads against each other over not charging Cosby with sexual assault during their respective tenures in the county DA office.

Steele rode Cosby's prosecution to victory. After taking office, Steele charged Cosby with sexual assault. Steele used Cosby's deposition testimony at trial and won a conviction.

Soon after Cosby was convicted, Smollett was indicted for 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly lying to Chicago police. He was accused of hiring two brothers in 2019 to make it appear as though he was the victim of a hate crime.

A couple of weeks after the indictment, the district attorney's office reached an agreement with Smollett and his legal team to drop the charges. Prosecutors took into consideration Smollett's history of volunteer work in the city and his agreement to forfeit his $10,000 bond. He did 15 hours of community service and the charges were dismissed.

However, due to mounting public pressure, including a harsh rebuke from the mayor of Chicago, a Cook County judge appointed a special prosecutor in June 2019 to conduct an independent investigation of Smollett's case.

Smollett was later indicted on six charges of disorderly conduct. He was convicted on five of those charges in December 2021.

Cosby and Smollett both appealed their convictions.

In 2021, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that Cosby was unfairly prosecuted because he agreed to testify without invoking his Fifth Amendment right based on a deal made with the DA.

For Smollett, the outcome was similar. The Illinois Supreme Court ruled, "Because the initial charges were dismissed as part of an agreement with defendant and defendant performed his part of the agreement, the second prosecution was barred."

Joseph Cammarata, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney and partner at Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata and Siegel, told CNN, "A special prosecutor was appointed and sought to undo what the state had agreed to, and the (Illinois Supreme Court) said, 'no, we're not going to allow that because it's not just, it's not fair, and the state must be bound by its word.'"

Both the Illinois and Pennsylvania Supreme Courts agreed that a man or woman accused of a crime must be able to trust a bargain made with the county's top prosecutor. Anything less would undermine the criminal justice system.

Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett, Kelly & George P.C. His book "The Executioner's Toll, 2010" was released by McFarland Publishing. You can reach him at www.mattmangino.com and follow him on X @MatthewTMangino.

To visit Creators CLICK HERE

West Virginia man who threatened jurors in synagogue massacre trial enters guilty plea

A West Virginia man pleaded guilty to obstructing the federal hate crime trial of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter after sending threatening messages to jurors and witnesses in the case, reported The Hill. 

Hardy Lloyd, 45, admitted to relaying hostile social media posts, comments and emails throughout the trial of Robert Bowers, who in 2018 killed 11 congregants at the Tree of Life Synagogue. Bowers was convicted on 63 counts; a jury recommended a death sentence in August. 

A self-identified “reverend” of a white supremacy, Lloyd previously described Bowers as a “lone wolf hero” and criticized jurors who convicted him as “guilty of anti-White racism,” according to the Justice Department.

“Free Robert Bowers Now!! … We need to support anyone who kills jews,” he posted on one Russian social media site, according to prosecutors. 

Lloyd’s white supremacist organization’s website also contained an “enemies page,” which lists those individuals’ home addresses, workplaces, family photos and contact information. He threatened to post online the jurors’ information — which was sealed during the trial — to “keep the trial honest,” according to court filings.

“Y’all who are on the jury, make sure to vote what you know in your heart is morally correct,” he wrote online with two winking-face emoticon. “Free Richard Bowers, city of Pittsburgh or else there will be ‘legal’ consiquences (sic)!”

As part of his plea agreement, Lloyd stipulated that he intentionally picked jurors and government witnesses as targets “due to the actual or perceived Jewish religion of the witnesses and the Bowers victims,” the Justice Department said in a statement. 

“Hardy Lloyd attempted to obstruct the federal hate crimes trial of the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “His guilty plea underscores that anyone who attempts to obstruct a federal trial by threatening or intimidating jurors or witnesses will be met with the full force of the Justice Department.” 

FBI Director Christopher Wray said the agency “will not tolerate the intimidation of citizens participating in our criminal justice system.” 

If a judge accepts Lloyd’s plea deal, he will spend 78 months — about six-and-a-half years — in prison, according to the Justice Department. 

To read more CLICK HERE

Tree of Life Synagogue killer eligible for the death penalty

A Pennsylvania federal jury on found the gunman responsible for the shooting deaths of 11 people at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania eligible for the death penalty. Robert Bowers now faces an additional trial in which the same jury will determine whether he should be sentenced to death or given life imprisonment, reported Jurist. A Pennsylvania federal jury previously found Bowers guilty on 63 criminal charges—including hate crimes—on June 16.

According to local reporters from KDKA within the room, which was otherwise closed to cameras, the jury weighed three questions in determining Bowers’ eligibility for the death penalty. Those three questions were:

• Is Bowers 18 or older?
• Did Bowers have the criminal intent to commit the crimes he was convicted of?
• Was there one or more aggravating factors present in the commission of those crimes?

After less than two hours of deliberation, the jury returned and unanimously answered “yes” to all three questions. As a result, the same panel of jurors will now sit for an additional trial in which federal prosecutors from the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania and Bowers’ defense counsel will present evidence and testimony as to whether or not Bowers should suffer the death penalty. That trial is set to begin as soon as Monday, July 17.

In closing statements, prior to the jury’s Thursday verdict, prosecutors argued Bowers “intended to hunt down and kill every Jew he could find.” They continued, “He fired his rifle more than 70 times in the Tree of Life synagogue, each time he pulled the trigger, he was proving his intent to kill.” In response, in their closing statements, the defense argued that Bowers was “delusional” at the time of the shooting and therefore did not possess the intent that prosecutors claimed.

Outside of the courthouse on Thursday, reporters spoke to President of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh Jeffrey Finkelstein, who said, “This is clear that this was hatred of Jews. This was antisemitism. It is not mental health. They are two different things.” Finkelstein also told reporters that he had spoken to the families of some of the victims. He said that they are eager to share their stories in the upcoming trial to determine Bowers’ sentence.

Under federal law, a criminal defendant is eligible for the death penalty in only three circumstances: if they are charged with a death penalty-eligible crime, if they have a high level of culpability or intent to kill the victim, or if there are one or more aggravating factors present in the case. In this case, 11 of the 63 charges against Bowers involved the obstruction of free exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death under 18 U.S.C. § 247, which made Bowers eligible for the death penalty. On top of that, prosecutors presented and proved that there were aggravating factors present in the case which warranted the application of the death penalty.

The shooting occurred at the Tree of Life Synagogue on October 27, 2018 during Shabbat services. Bowers entered the building with multiple firearms and opened fire on the congregation gathered inside, resulting in 11 deaths and 7 injuries. Over the course of Bowers’ trial, prosecutors revealed evidence of Bowers’ participation in and consumption of white supremacist media. This evidence is what ultimately led the jury to convict Bowers on all 63 criminal charges.

To read more CLICK HERE

Biden will host White House summit on hate-fueled violence

U.S. President Joe Biden will host a White House summit in September to counter the effects of hate-fueled violence on American democracy and highlight his administration's actions to reduce gun violence, the White House told Reuters.

The Sept. 15 summit, dubbed "United We Stand," will bring together officials, faith leaders and civil rights groups and feature a keynote speech by Biden, who will put forward a shared vision for a more united America, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

Even as our nation has endured a disturbing series of hate-fueled attacks, from Oak Creek to Pittsburgh, from El Paso to Poway, from Atlanta to Buffalo, Americans remain overwhelmingly united in their opposition to such violence," Jean-Pierre said.

Biden, a Democrat, is seeking to highlight his recent legislative wins, including a gun safety law he signed in June, ahead of November midterm congressional elections. 

To read more CLICK HERE

Actor Jussie Smollett sentenced to 5 months in jail and three years probation

 A judge in Chicago sentenced Jussie Smollett to five months in jail on Thursday, ordering that the actor be incarcerated for falsely reporting to the police that he had been the victim of a racist and homophobic attack in 2019, reported The New York Times.

At the end of a hearing that lasted about five hours, Judge James B. Linn excoriated Mr. Smollett from the bench, saying that he had concluded that the actor had premeditated the hoax and that despite his and his family’s admirable past work in social justice, he had an arrogant, selfish side and had planned the stunt because he “craved the attention.”

In the searing speech, the judge said that Mr. Smollett’s name had become synonymous with lying, that he had sought to throw a “national pity party” for himself and that Mr. Smollett’s conduct had undermined other victims of hate crimes at a sensitive time, as America was trying to climb out of its painful history of racism.

“You took some scabs off some healing wounds and you ripped them apart,” the judge said. “And for one reason: You wanted to make yourself more famous.”

Given the chance to address the court before the sentencing, Mr. Smollett declined. But after Judge Linn read his sentence, the actor defiantly stood up and declared, “I did not do this, and I am not suicidal,” adding that “if anything happens to me when I go in there, I did not do it to myself.” As he was taken into custody to begin his jail sentence, Mr. Smollett raised his right fist. His lawyers immediately said they planned to appeal.

During the hearing, the defense and prosecution presented sharply different views of Mr. Smollett’s offense. Prosecutors framed it as a calculated plan to deceive law enforcement and the public at a time when hate crimes were on the rise. Mr. Smollett’s lawyers portrayed it as a minor low-level felony that had been subjected to an outsize amount of prosecutorial attention.

“Why are we jumping up and down and acting like this is a murder case?” said Nenye Uche, a lawyer for Mr. Smollett. “It’s not.”

Daniel K. Webb, the special prosecutor who handled the case, argued in court that Mr. Smollett had made matters worse for himself by declaring his innocence in front of the jury.

The judge ultimately sided with the prosecution.

At trial, Mr. Smollett had been found guilty of felony disorderly conduct, which carries a sentence of up to three years in prison. The judge decided on a shorter sentence, to be served in a local jail, and also gave Mr. Smollett a term of more than two years of probation and a fine of $25,000. He was also ordered to pay more than $120,000 in restitution for the cost of Chicago’s police investigation of his case.

Before the sentencing, well-known figures like the Rev. Jesse Jackson; Samuel L. Jackson and his wife, the actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson; and Derrick Johnson, the president of the N.A.A.C.P., wrote letters to the judge asking him to forgo prison time. Supporters argued that Mr. Smollett had no previous felonies on his record and that he had suffered reputational damage after the police accused him of orchestrating a hoax assault.

On Thursday, Mr. Webb recommended that Mr. Smollett be incarcerated for an unspecified amount of time, arguing that his misconduct was serious, that he lied to the jury and that he had shown no contrition.

“What Smollett did in this case is he denigrated, degraded true hate crimes and he marginalized the people who are true victims of hate crimes,” Mr. Webb told the judge. 

The sentencing caps more than three years of twists and turns in a case that inflamed political divisions and stirred up controversy among Chicago officials. For days, Mr. Smollett was viewed as a victim, someone who had been beaten and targeted with racial and homophobic slurs. Even after the authorities challenged his version of events, it seemed as though Mr. Smollett would avoid significant criminal punishment. Prosecutors dropped the charges against him in March 2019. But in 2020, Mr. Smollett was indicted again after Mr. Webb revived the investigation into what happened in the early morning hours of Jan. 29, 2019.

The case was closely followed nationally, and in Chicago the issue became particularly potent, as prosecutors’ decision to drop the charges divided their office and the Police Department; the issue also became a central vein of criticism against Kim Foxx, the county’s top prosecutor, during her recent campaign for re-election. 

During the trial, the prosecution told the jury that Mr. Smollett had instructed two brothers, Abimbola Osundairo and Olabinjo Osundairo, to attack him near his apartment in Chicago, where they placed a rope around his neck like a noose and yelled, “This is MAGA country.”

The Osundairos each testified at length, explaining how Mr. Smollett took them through a “dry run” of the attack and asked one of them to “fake beat him up.”

Mr. Smollett, 39, who in 2019 was best known for starring in the music-industry drama “Empire,” maintained his innocence during seven hours of testimony over two days, telling the jury that he had been the victim of a real hate crime. His lawyers argued in court that the Osundairo brothers relished their proximity to fame and that they wanted to scare Mr. Smollett enough to get him to hire them as his security detail.

The lawyers also highlighted homophobic comments by Olabinjo Osundairo, suggesting the attack could have been motivated by bias against Mr. Smollett, who is gay. (On the stand, Mr. Osundairo repeatedly denied being homophobic.)

The prosecution's evidence included video surveillance of the men meeting up for what the brothers said was the “dry run” and Instagram messages from Mr. Smollett to Abimbola Osundairo shortly before the attack in which the actor provided updates on the timing of his flight back to Chicago.

The defense disputed that Mr. Smollett had planned the attack, arguing that both the messages and the footage were evidence that he had been interacting with Abimbola Osundairo because he had been providing the actor with fitness training.

The 12-person jury in December found Mr. Smollett guilty of five out of six counts of felony disorderly conduct related to his police report.

Judge Linn announced his decision after denying the defense’s bid to have the conviction thrown out or for the actor to gain a new trial.

Much of the hearing was devoted to efforts by the defense to argue that Mr. Smollett deserved a new trial and that he certainly should not be jailed. The courtroom at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse contained several members of his family, including his older brother, Joel Smollett Jr., and other supporters, such as a former musical director for “Empire,” Rich Daniels. Mr. Daniels took the witness stand to speak to Mr. Smollett’s character, giving examples of what supporters described as a generous and humble spirit.

“Incarceration of any kind would send the wrong message,” said Joel Smollett Jr., as Jussie Smollett wiped tears from his eyes, “especially in a time in which we as a nation have expressed, in a bipartisan plurality, the desire to see real criminal justice reform.”

To read more CLICK HERE

U.S. House approves law making lynching a federal hate crime

 The U.S House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved legislation that would make lynching a federal hate crime, moving to formally outlaw a brutal act that has become a symbol of the failure by Congress and the country to reckon with the history of racial violence in America, reported the Washington Post.

Passage of the anti-lynching bill, named in honor of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old Black teenager brutally tortured and murdered in Mississippi in 1955, came after more than a century of failed attempts. Lawmakers estimated they had tried more than 200 times to pass a measure to explicitly criminalize a type of attack that has long terrorized Black Americans. This bill was approved 422 to 3, and was expected to pass the Senate, where it enjoys broad support.

“The House today has sent a resounding message that our nation is finally reckoning with one of the darkest and most horrific periods of our history, and that we are morally and legally committed to changing course,” said Representative Bobby L. Rush, Democrat of Illinois, who had vowed to see the legislation become law before retiring at the end of his term.

In a statement, Mr. Rush, who was a civil-rights leader and founded the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, recalled when, as an 8-year-old boy, he first saw a photograph of Emmett’s battered body, an image that he said “shaped my consciousness as a Black man in America, changed the course of my life, and changed our nation.”

To read more CLICK HERE

Cuccinelli claims Jewish hate crime by American citizen the result of illegal immigration

Acting deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and former attorney general of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli claimed that a U.S. citizen accused of stabbing five Hasidic Jews at a Hanukkah celebration in New York lacked “American values” because the man’s father was an undocumented immigrant who gained legal status more than three decades ago, reported the Huffington Post. 

“The attacker is the US Citizen son of an illegal alien who got amnesty under the 1986 amnesty law for illegal immigrants,” Cuccinelli, acting deputy secretary at DHS, said Monday morning in a now-deleted tweet. “Apparently, American values did not take hold among this entire family, at least this one violent, and apparently bigoted, son.”

To read more CLICK HERE

Suspect in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting challenges death penalty

Lawyers for the suspect in the synagogue shooting that killed 11 people in Pittsburgh have challenged his potential death sentence as unconstitutional, reported The Associated Press.

Lawyers for Robert Bowers argued in court papers filed this week that capital punishment violates the Fifth Amendment’s due process clause and the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

They also said the practice of carrying out federal executions in state prisons violates a Tenth Amendment protection that says states can’t be made to enforce federal laws, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported Friday.

Defense lawyer Judy Clarke has made similar arguments in other high-profile capital cases. Her clients have included Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tasarnaev, who is appealing his 2015 death sentence, and “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski, who entered a plea agreement that spared him the death penalty.

In court filings, Clarke said that she has tried to negotiate a life sentence for Bowers but that prosecutors have rebuffed her.

Bowers is charged with killing 11 congregants during a Shabbat service at the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and injuring six others, including four police officers.

He has pleaded not guilty to 63 federal counts, 22 of which carry the death penalty. His defense team also includes public defenders Michael Novara and Elisa Long.

No trial date has been set.

To read more CLICK HERE

Hate crimes on the rise, especially those against Latinos

Personal attacks motivated by bias or prejudice reached a 16-year high in 2018, the F.B.I. said, with a significant upswing in violence against Latinos outpacing a drop in assaults targeting Muslims and Arab-Americans, reported the New York Times.

Over all, the number of hate crimes of all kinds reported in the United States remained fairly flat last year after a three-year increase, according to an annual F.B.I. report. But while crimes against property were down, physical assaults against people were up, accounting for 61 percent of the 7,120 incidents classified as hate crimes by law enforcement officials nationwide.

State and local police forces are not required to report hate crimes to the F.B.I., but the bureau has made a significant effort in recent years to increase awareness and response rates. Still, many cities and some entire states failed to collect or report the data last year, limiting the conclusions that can be drawn from the F.B.I. report.

In addition, experts say that more than half of all victims of hate crimes never file a complaint with the authorities in the first place.

To read more CLICK HERE

Federal prosecutor seeks permission to pursue death penalty for Pittsburgh synagogue massacre

U.S. Attorney Scott Brady says federal prosecutors are seeking approval to pursue the death penalty against Bowers, reported the Associated Press.

Brady says he has begun the process to get Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ approval as required by law to pursue a capital case against Bowers.

The attack went on for about 20 minutes and the FBI is treating the shooting as a hate crime.

“Members of the Tree of Life synagogue conducting a peaceful service were brutally murdered in their place a worship by a gunman targeting them simply because of their faith,” Bob Jones, of the FBI, said.

Criminal homicide charges have been filed against a man accused of killing 11 people and injuring several others inside a Squirrel Hill synagogue on Saturday.

Police say 46-year-old Robert Bowers walked into the Tree of Life Synagogue yelling anti-Semitic slurs and shooting at worshipers while three separate services were taking place.

The Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office has now filed charges against the alleged gunman, which include 11 counts of criminal homicide, along with six counts of attempted homicide, six counts of aggravated assault and 13 counts of ethnic intimidation.

Investigators say Bowers was armed with an AR-15 and three handguns. All four weapons were used in the shooting.

Bowers exchanged gunfire with police before he was subdued and taken to the hospital. He has undergone surgery and is under guard at the hospital.

Four officers were among the injured. One officer was released from the hospital on Saturday and a second was released Sunday. According to Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert, the other two officers will require further treatment.

According to court paperwork, Bowers made statements to police “that he wanted all Jews to die and also that they were committing genocide to his people.”

To read more CLICK HERE

Hate crimes on the rise nationwide

Though relatively rare, hate crimes have seen an increase in cities across the USA, reported the USA Today. In California alone, the number spiked 44 percent between 2014 and 2017, up to 1,093 hate crimes last year, the state's attorney general's office reported last week.

The total number of hate crimes in the 10 largest cities in America jumped in 2017, marking four straight years for an uptick in such incidents. 

The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University found a 12.5 percent increase in incidents reported by police last year in Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego and San Jose, California. 

The number of hate crimes reported in those cities totaled 1,038, up from 923 in 2016, according to the May study. In New York, nearly half of hate crimes last year were committed against Jewish people. In Los Angeles, gay men were targeted most. And in Boston the largest demographic hit by hate crimes were African Americans. 

Brian Levin, co-author of the report, attributed the recent increases to greater "incivility" in national politics, citing policies such as President Donald Trump's travel ban from several majority-Muslim countries. 

National events can also spur these types of crimes, according to Heidi Beirich, director of the intelligence project at the Southern Poverty Law Center. After the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, crimes against Muslim people were rampant, Beirich said. The FBI reported 8,063 hate crimes in 2000 and 9,730 in 2001. 

To read more CLICK HERE

Pennsylvania ranks 5th in the nation in hate groups

Pennsylvania had 40 active hate groups operating within its borders in 2016, making it the state with the fifth most extremist organizations in the United States, reports the Harrisburg Patriot-News.

On Wednesday, the Southern Poverty Law Center released its annual "Intelligence Report," which documents which and how many hate groups are operating in the country. California had the most hate groups in 2016, followed by Florida, Texas, New York and Pennsylvania.

The number of hate and extremist organizations in the united States rose for the second year in a row following terrorist attacks, a contentious presidential election and divisive rhetoric.

While researchers found a 3 percent rise in hate groups nationwide, the number of hate groups in Pennsylvania remained the same in 2015 and 2016.

The 40 hate groups within the state offer a variety of extremist views in areas across Pennsylvania.

The majority of hate groups in Pennsylvania fall under white supremacy. This includes Ku Klux Klan chapters, neo-Nazis, racist skinheads, white nationalists and racist music groups -- a total of 24 groups.

The SPLC makes distinctions between the different white supremacy groups and are separated into different categories.
To breakdown even further there are seven KKK chapters, four neo-Nazi groups, 6 racist skinheads groups, six white nationalist organizations and one racist music group in the state.

To read more CLICK HERE

GateHouse: Rhetoric fuels increase of hate

Matthew T. Mangino

GateHouse Media

February 17, 2017

The number of hate groups in the United States increased last year. Nationwide, researchers found a 3 percent rise in groups that advocate and practice hatred, hostility, or violence toward primarily members of a race, ethnicity, nation, religion, gender or sexual orientation.

This week, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) released its annual "Intelligence Report" documenting the number and kind of hate groups operating across the country. California had the most hate groups in 2016, followed by Florida, Texas, New York and Pennsylvania.

Hate groups are not a new thing. The Roman Empire persecuted Christians and other religious groups for centuries. One of history's most infamous and horrifying hate groups were the Nazis. Adolf Hitler and his henchmen called for the total annihilation of Jews leading to the Holocaust and one of darkest moments in human history.

In more recent years, the act of genocide, or attempting to obliterate an entire ethnic, racial or religious group, has occurred in both Bosnia and Rwanda.

This is the second consecutive year that the number of hate groups has risen. The fear of terrorist attacks, high profile hate crimes and a contentious presidential election have all contributed to the increase.

The largest increase involved the number of anti-Muslim hate groups. The SPLC found that anti-Muslim hate groups rose from 34 in 2015 to 101 in 2016 — a shocking increase of 197 percent.

These numbers rose without accounting for the inevitable pushback from President Donald Trump's ill-conceived travel ban and the federal court's resounding rejection of the president's executive order.

While the Ku Klux Klan nearly doubled in size during the Barack Obama Administration, according to the SPLC the number of Klan chapters fell 32 percent from 190 groups in 2015 to 130 in 2016. Interestingly, the number of neo-Confederate groups — the KKK's first "Grand Wizard" was Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest — rose by 23 percent from 35 groups in 2015 to 43 in 2016.

What is surprising about the five leading states with hate groups is that none — other than perhaps Florida — are traditional states thought of as racially or religiously intolerant. Pennsylvania, for instance, had 40 active hate groups operating within its borders in 2016, earning itself a fifth place ranking.

The majority of hate groups in Pennsylvania fall under white supremacy. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the groups include Klan chapters, neo-Nazis, racist skinheads and white nationalists. The Nation of Islam, a black separatist group, also operates in Pennsylvania.

New York, another northern state known for its liberal bent, ranks third in the nation for the number of hate groups. There are 44 hate organizations throughout the state including the American Defense League, an anti-Muslim group; the Aryan Strikeforce and the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.

Hate crimes in New York City were up by nearly one-third in 2016. NYPD statistics show that anti-Muslim attacks were responsible for much of the rise, according to the New York Daily News.

The most recent statistics from the FBI cataloged a total of 5,818 hate crimes in 2015 — a rise of about 6 percent over the previous year. Again, attacks against Muslim Americans saw the biggest surge.

According to the New York Times, there were 257 reports of assaults, attacks on mosques and other hate crimes against Muslims is 2015, a jump of about 67 percent over 2014. It was the highest total since 2001, when more than 480 attacks occurred in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 tragedy.

At this moment in America, hate is "hot." Fueled in part by the vitriolic presidential campaign and becoming increasingly combustible in the wake of the failed policy to ban "Muslim" refugees from entering this country.

There is much blame to go around, but rhetoric from the White House is doing nothing to turn down the heat.

— Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett, Kelly & George P.C. His book "The Executioner's Toll, 2010" was released by McFarland Publishing. You can reach him atwww.mattmangino.com and follow him on Twitter @MatthewTMangino.

To visit the column CLICK HERE

Lawmakers seek to make violence against police a hate crime

Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that he plans to propose a law providing for additional punishment for crimes against law enforcement officers, reported Jurist. The proposed Police Protection Act (PPA) would extend hate crime protections to law enforcement officers, organize a "campaign to educate young Texans on the value law enforcement officers bring to their communities" and "increase criminal penalties for any crime in which the victim is a law enforcement officer" even if the crime would not otherwise qualify as a hate crime. Abbott used assault with bodily injury as an example of a crime subject to the proposed enhancements, from the current third degree felony to a second degree felony under the proposal.

The Governor's announcement comes amid a national conversation about police use of force, particularly against black citizens, and subsequent retaliation. This week, Texas Senator John Cornyn introduced legislation that would elevate the penalties for killing, conspire to kill, or attempting to kill officers and judges. 

Last week, North Carolina's Governor Pat McCory signed [JURIST] into law a bill providing that police camera footage, including body camera footage, is not a matter of public record and proscribes the procedure for release of footage.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards signed a "Blue Lives Matter" bill that also raises the penalties [JURIST] for crimes against police officers. Some have criticized the measures as being redundant since many laws already raise the penalties for crimes against police officers. 

To read more CLICK HERE

Today is the day to launch a crusade against hate

On this Easter morning when we think of peace, love and sacrifice--we need to be vigilante against the hate that continue to be spread by groups that spew hate in the name of racial, sexual or religious superiority.  NBC News recently expounded on the state of hate in the wake of the recent deadly attack outside two Jewish centers in Kansas.
The only way to fight racial, sexual or religious hatred is understand and know the reach and extent of the problem. Here, by the numbers, is a snapshot of hate crime in America in 2014.

How many ‘hate groups’ are there?

There are 939 active hate groups in the United States – a 56 percent increase since 2000, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. The number of such groups surged in response to President Barack Obama’s election and the economic downturn – growing from 888 in 2008 to 1,007 in 2012 – before falling back slightly last year, according to Mark Potok, who tracks extremist groups for the SPLC. Members of these groups and others were involved in 5,796 “incidents” in 2012, the most recent year for which the FBI has compiled data. While that number declined from the 6,222 incidents reported in the prior year, 7,164 people were victimized.

What is a hate crime?

As defined by the Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990, hate crimes are “crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on race, gender or gender identity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or ethnicity.”

For reporting purposes, it does not matter whether or not the perpetrators of the crime were ever charged with a hate crime.

How often do hate crimes occur?    

The FBI is charged under the Hate Crime Statistics Act with compiling statistics on hate crimes. In its most recent report, for 2012, it counted 5,796 incidents resulting in 7,164 victims. That was a decline from the previous year, in which the FBI tallied 6,222 incidents.

Separately, the Bureau of Justice Statistics has been collecting data on crimes motivated by hate since 2003 for its National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). That survey, which includes data on crimes believed by the victims to have been motivated by hate but not reported to police, showed a spike in hate crimes from 2011 to 2012.

What trends do the data show?

According to the FBI’s data for 2012, most hate crime is motivated by race, accounting for 48 percent of all such reports.

Here are some other trends from the data since 1995:

Overall incidence of hate crimes

The number of hate crimes has fallen by about one-fourth over the years from 1995 through 2012, the latest year for which numbers are available. In 1995, the FBI counted 7,947 incidents. The count remained generally steady, with ups and downs, until the late 2000s, when it dipped into the 6,000s before hitting 5,796 in 2012. These changes could be attributable, in part, to variations in the agencies reporting to the FBI from year to year.     

Average incidents per year

Over the entire period, the average number of incidents reported per year was 7,573, with an average of 9,455 victims per year. For the latest year, 2012, the numbers are 5,796 incidents with 7,164 victims.

To read more Click Here

The Cautionary Instruction: Pennsylvania's hate crime statute inadequate

Matthew T. Mangino
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/Ipso Facto
January 17, 2014


In 2008, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld a lower-court ruling striking down the state’s Ethnic Intimidation Act that covered hate crimes based on, among other things, sexual orientation, gender identity, and physical or mental disability. As a result, Pennsylvania is one of 15 states that exclude sexual orientation and gender identity in its definition of a hate crime.
Since then, high-profile crimes against specific groups across the state could not be prosecuted under the state’s hate-crime law. If they had been, those convicted could have received more severe sentences, reported PublicSource.
Pennsylvania is not the only state with inadequate hate crime statutes. The shortcomings of Ohio’s hate crime law have emerged in the recent attacks on gays and transgender victims in Cleveland. The law’s failure to include sexual orientation and sexual identity is amplified by the fact that Cleveland and Akron are preparing to host the 2014 Gay Games.
Ohio law broadly defines hate crimes as criminal acts motivated by prejudice or intolerance and directed toward a member of a gender, racial, religious or social group, according to the Ohio Bar Association website.
Only five states have no hate crime statute whatsoever. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have hate-crime laws that include sexual orientation and gender identity and 15 address only sexual orientation, according to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act — both sexual orientation and gender identity are specifically included in federal law. The law extended the federal hate crimes statute protecting people against violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity along with race, religion, gender, national origin and disability.
The federal statute has permitted the Department of Justice to intervene in cases that might have otherwise been prosecuted by state authorities.
In Texas, which has a broad hate crime statute, local authorities have turned over a “knockout” assault to federal prosecutors. Knockout is the criminal act of randomly punching a stranger in the jaw with the intent of knocking them unconscious. A white man in Texas is in federal custody after punching a 79-year-old black man and knocking him unconscious.
A lawyer for the man said in an interview that he planned to challenge the constitutionality of the federal hate crimes statute. The lawyer told The Huffington Post it was "absolutely" inappropriate for the federal government to get involved in this case, and that this type of alleged assault should have been charged under existing Texas law.
(

---

Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett, Kelly & George, P.C. He is the former district attorney of Lawrence County and just completed a six year term on the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole. His weekly column on crime and punishment is syndicated by GateHouse New Service. You can read his musings on the criminal justice system at www.mattmangino.com and follow Matt on Twitter @MatthewTMangino. His book The Executioner's Toll, 2010 is due out this summer.


Visit Ipso Facto

Ohio’s hate-crime law falls short — as incidents reveal

Matthew T. Mangino
The Youngstown Vindicator
January 12, 2013


The shortcomings of Ohio’s hate-crime law have emerged in the recent attacks on gays and transgender victims in Cleveland. The law’s failure to include sexual orientation and sexual identity is amplified by the fact that Cleveland and Akron are preparing to host the 2014 Gay Games.
Ohio joins 14 other states — including Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Indiana — that have failed to include sexual orientation and gender identity in their hate crime statute. Only five states have no hate crime statute whatsoever. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have hate-crime laws that include sexual orientation and gender identity and the remaining 15 address only sexual orientation, according to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
Ohio law broadly defines hate crimes as criminal acts motivated by prejudice or intolerance and directed toward a member of a gender, racial, religious or social group, according to the Ohio Bar Association website.
Aspect of a crime
Ohio’s hate crime statutes are not stand-alone statutes meaning that the “hate” aspect of a crime is punishable either through a “penalty enhancement” or as a “discretionary sentencing factor.”
The only Ohio statute that speaks directly to hate crimes is “ethnic intimidation.” The statute prohibits specific existing conduct when carried out for reasons of race, color, religion or national origin of the victim.
The inadequacy of Ohio’s hate-crime statute was evident last month, when the body of a 52-year-old disabled, transgender woman, was discovered by her caregiver at an assisted living facility in Cleveland. A second transgender woman was found the next morning shot to death in a car along a Cleveland street.
“These are crimes of hate,” Ed Tomba, deputy chief of the Cleveland Police Department told the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. “We acknowledge that, make no mistake about it, but as far as the law goes ... we will take these two crimes to the federal government, we will ask them to review them and see if they fall under the hate crime statute.”
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act — both sexual orientation and gender identity are specifically included in federal law. The law extended the federal hate crimes statute protecting people against violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity along with race, religion, gender, national origin and disability.
Justice Department
In Ohio, local police must present the evidence of a hate crime based on sexual orientation and gender identity to the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice, which ultimately decides whether to pursue the case in federal court.
Last fall, two gay men were attacked outside a well-known LGBT bar in Cleveland. Police arrested two individuals last month, including a 13-year-old boy, in connection with the two assaults.
Attacks based on sexual orientation are nothing new. Ohio Department of Public Safety records indicate 16 percent of hate crimes are based on sexual orientation, ranking it behind race at 48 percent and disability at 18 percent, but ahead of crimes based on ethnicity and religion.
However, efforts to include sexual orientation and gender identity in Ohio’s hate-crime statute have failed. A bill proposed in 2011 would have inserted “sexual orientation, gender, identity and disability” into the hate crimes statute. The bill never made it out of committee.
A new bipartisan hate crime bill introduced several months ago would once again attempt to include sexual orientation, gender identity and disability in Ohio’s statute.
‘Fairness’
The new bill introduced by Rep. Nickie Antonio has Republican and Democratic co-sponsors. “The majority of Ohioans value fairness and do not support hate crimes committed against any group,” Antonio told the Plain Dealer. “All Ohioans should be protected from intimidation and fear.”


Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett, Kelly & George P.C. His book “The Executioner’s Toll, 2010” is due out this summer. You can reach him at www.mattmangino.com.


Visit The Vindicator

GateHouse: Fighting the most chilling and sinister of crimes

Matthew T. Mangino

GateHouse News Service

January 3, 2014

 

"Knockout" is not a game. The criminal act of randomly punching a stranger in the jaw with the intent of knocking them unconscious is getting the attention of law enforcement agencies across the nation. A recent attack in Brooklyn resulted in the arrest of a man charged with aggravated assault as a hate crime.

 

The “knockout” phenomenon is only a segment of a growing trend of criminal acts motivated by prejudice or intolerance and directed toward a member of a gender, racial, religious, ethnic group and, in some states, based on the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

 

More and more hate crimes are being prosecuted by the federal government. Many federal prosecutions grow out of necessity, not choice.

 

The inadequacy of Ohio’s hate crime statute is a case in point. Last month, the body of a 52-year-old disabled transgender woman, was discovered by her caregiver at an assisted living facility in Cleveland. A second transgender woman was found the next morning shot to death in a car along a Cleveland street.

 

"These are crimes of hate," Ed Tomba, deputy chief of the Cleveland Police Department told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.  "We acknowledge that, make no mistake about it, but as far as the law goes ... we will take these two crimes to the federal government, we will ask them to review them and see if they fall under the hate crime statute."

 

Ohio’s hate crime statute does not include sexual orientation or gender identity. In Ohio, local police must present the evidence of a hate crime based on sexual orientation and gender identity to the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice, which ultimately decides whether to pursue the case in federal court.

 

In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act — both sexual orientation and gender identity are specifically included in federal law. The law extended the federal hate crimes statute protecting people against violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity along with race, religion, gender, national origin and disability.

 

Only five states do not have a hate crime statute. Fifteen states, including Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama and Ohio, have failed to include sexual orientation and gender identity in their hate crime statute. Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have hate crime laws that include sexual orientation and gender identity, and the remaining 15 address only sexual orientation, according to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

 

In Texas, which has a broad hate crime statute, local authorities have turned over a “knockout” assault to federal prosecutors. Conrad Barrett, a white man, is in federal custody after punching a 79-year-old black man and knocking him unconscious.

 

George Parnham, a lawyer for Barrett, said in an interview that he planned to challenge the constitutionality of the federal hate crimes statute. He told The Huffington Post it was "absolutely" inappropriate for the federal government to get involved in this case, and that this type of alleged assault should have been charged under existing Texas law.

 

The federal government has argued that Congress' power to pass hate crimes laws comes from the Thirteenth Amendment, which outlawed slavery.

 

Every federal circuit has upheld, under the Thirteenth Amendment, the constitutionality of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.  A federal judge said in 2011, “Not only does history indicate that Congress’ conclusion was rational, but case law also identifies racially motivated violence as a badge of slavery.”

 

Whether it’s a racial motivated “knockout” assault or the murder of a transgender man or woman, hate crime laws are effective tools for fighting the most chilling and sinister of crimes.

 

Matthew T. Mangino is of counsel with Luxenberg, Garbett, Kelly & George P.C. His book "The Executioner’s Toll, 2010" is due out this summer. You can reach him at www.mattmangino.com and follow him on Twitter at @MatthewTMangino.
 

Visit the Column