Prosecutors Urge Hate Crime Reporting

With President Donald Trump's election victory in November, concerns about hate crimes have been heightened across the country. Trump's bigoted rhetoric has been reflected in his Cabinet choices and drawn support from white supremacists and other hate groups.

In San Francisco, District Attorney George Gasc-n has continued to pursue prosecutions of hate crimes, and he wants people to let authorities know about such incidents.

"The only way we can understand the scope of the problem is by people reporting" incidents, Gasc-n said.

The DA's office is currently prosecuting 15 hate crime cases. At least two of those are LGBT-related.

Ben Mains joined the San Francisco DA's office in January 2016 and took over the hate crime unit last May. Maggie Buitrago, who's been with the DA's office since 2013, joined the unit in December.

The two attorneys, who are both straight allies, also handle numerous other cases.

Handling such prosecutions can be tricky, including trying to determine whether an act was motivated by hate. Just because a slur like "faggot" is used during an attack doesn't necessarily mean it's a hate crime.

"The line is so gray between what is a hate crime and what's not," Mains said.

There's a "huge range" of factors that may be used to show that someone "was targeted substantially because of their identity," including the type of slur and when during the incident it was made, he said.

Regardless, Mains said, "You've got to report it, and we will work it out."

Even if factors such as slurs don't result in a specific hate crime allegation, they're "definitely a factor in aggravation, and we'll take that into consideration," Buitrago said. Aggravating circumstances can mean tougher sentences.

There can be "increased penalties" even if there's not a separate allegation, Mains said.

Buitrago recalled a case in which a transgender woman had been robbed. After she chased down the suspects, she heard at least one of them making anti-transgender slurs. That was used to show that it wasn't a typical robbery, which resulted in a stiffer sentence.

Two bills pending in the state Legislature would address how hate crimes are handled by law enforcement agencies. One would establish a toll-free hotline, while the other would require local agencies to update their policies. (See related story.)

An incident may be a hate crime even if the victim isn't a member of the targeted group, such as when someone attacks a straight man mistakenly thinking the victim's gay.

"It doesn't matter if the defendant is wrong" in choosing their target, Mains said.

He also urged people to report problems regardless of their immigration status.

"We do not care what your immigration status is," he said.

Challenges

There are other challenges, though.

Buitrago said a "big hurdle" involves "the intersection between mental health and crime. ... Proving specific intent when someone has mental health issues is extremely difficult."

One person who's been particularly helpful as prosecutors deal with hate crime cases is gay police Sergeant Pete Shields, the lead investigator in the Special Investigations Division.

"We could not do this job without Pete," Mains said, calling Shields "very thoughtful and thorough."

Shields also had praise for Mains and Buitrago.

I've worked with Ben very closely," he said. "He is absolutely amazing. ... I can call Ben any time of the night, any time, and he's really willing to talk with me and go over cases."

Buitrago has been "a great addition," Shields said.

"She shares the same passion," he said, adding, "I feel fortunate to be working with the two of them."

Shortly after the November election, Gasc-n and other city officials promoted a hate crime hotline number that - while never out of service - was republished. There were reports that attacks on LGBTs, Muslims, people of color, and other communities had increased nationwide since Trump's election.

Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the DA's office, said in an email, "Our hate crimes prosecutors have been alerted to six calls to the hotline since December. None have included information about possible suspects. This obviously does not account for other hate crime incidents that the [San Francisco Police Department] and DA's office are investigating."

The DA's hate crime hotline number is (415) 551-9595.

People may contact the police department anonymously by calling (415) 575-4444 or by texting TIP411. Type SFPD in the subject line. Officials have reminded people that emergencies should still be reported to 911