Alternative Sentencing

While hate crimes laws are an essential tool in protecting victims of bias-motivated crimes, these laws cannot and do not address the attitudes which cause offenders to commit such crimes. Therefore, alternative sentencing programs which are aimed at rehabilitating individuals who commit hate-motivated crimes are useful in conjunction with traditional criminal penalties. These programs have proven to be especially effective with first-time and juvenile offenders.

ADL has therefore developed "The Juvenile Diversion Program: Learning About Differences," a 9-week series for students (and during some sessions their parents) on civil rights law, racism, anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, and a short history outlining the legacy of discrimination against minorities in America. The program, pioneered by the League's New York and Boston Regional Offices, is based on the idea that for many nonviolent hate crime perpetrators, ignorance and poor self-esteem contribute to their commission of bias-related acts. Furthermore, juvenile civil rights offenders are more likely than their adult counterparts to act out of ignorance rather than deeply ingrained attitudes. With the help of counseling and a structured program, it is possible in many cases to stimulate a change in the biased attitudes of these youth.

Rewards

Working in concert with law enforcement, rewards can in certain circumstances be helpful in encouraging individuals with information on hate crimes to come forward. A number of ADL Regional Offices have offered rewards in cases involving certain particularly heinous crimes which have been credited with bringing the perpetrators of these crimes to justice. Even in cases where the guilty party was not arrested, the ADL rewards were credited with helping to focus public attention on the crime.

The offering of rewards for information leading to the arrest and conviction of individuals involved in hate crimes is, of course, no reflection on law enforcement's ability to prosecute hate crimes.

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