The November 8th election of Donald Trump as the country’s next president brought an end to a long and very contentious election cycle. Unfortunately, the election results seemed to only heighten emotions and lead to some people acting out in extremely negative and intolerable ways. A newly released report by the Southern Poverty Law Center stated that the organization has collected reports on 1,094 incidents of bias-related harassment and intimidation in the United States from November 9th to December 12th.
Incidents Surged Immediately After Election Night
The Southern Poverty Law Center has a program that monitors the activities of hate groups throughout the United States and through their research found reports of 220 hate incidents on November 9th alone. The spike in hate incidents continued throughout the ensuing two weeks before recently beginning to show signs of slowing down with recent daily counts often in the single digits. However, new hate incidents continue to be reported.
Hate Incidents Happening Throughout the Country
Reported hate incidents are happening throughout the country, not just in localized areas. Hawaii, North Dakota, and Wyoming are the only states that have not had a reported incident since Election Night. The largest number of reports have come from California, where there have been 125 incidents from November 9th through December 12th. New York is second with 94 such incidents, and Texas is third with 71. Ohio has had 29 reported hate incidents during the same timeframe, which places the state 15th.
Alarming Trends in the Incident Data
The reports from the Southern Poverty Law Center track as many details about reported hate incidents as possible and the data reveals that racial bias accounts for more than half of the incidents. Of the 1,094 reported incidents, 646 of them were categorized as anti-immigrant, anti-black, or anti-Muslim. Possibly even more disturbing is the information regarding the location of reported hate incidents, as almost 400 of the reported incidents originated in schools and universities.
How a Cincinnati Criminal Defense Lawyer Can Help
Hate crimes are taken very seriously in the criminal justice system. The law in Ohio provides for an increase in the degree of certain charges if ethnic intimidation is involved, and many such incidents can lead to severe federal criminal charges as well. Even the accusation of a hate crime can create a social stigma that damages your personal and professional life. But times of highly charged emotions can lead to misunderstandings, and if you find yourself unfairly accused of a hate crime you will need a compassionate and skilled Cincinnati criminal defense attorney who is able to defend you during a difficult time.
Attorney Brad Groene with the firm Luftman, Heck & Associates is an experienced Cincinnati criminal defense lawyer, so he understands that every story has more than one side. He will work hard to make sure your side of the story is fairly heard and that your character is defended. Contact Luftman, Heck & Associates to get the help that you need.
Call (513) 338-1890 to set up a free and confidential consultation.
