{"id":18178,"date":"2021-07-02T00:05:41","date_gmt":"2021-07-02T07:05:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/politicalhat.com\/?p=18178"},"modified":"2021-07-02T00:05:41","modified_gmt":"2021-07-02T07:05:41","slug":"when-h8-crimes-are-thought-crimes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/impeachreno.org\/politicalhat\/2021\/07\/02\/when-h8-crimes-are-thought-crimes\/","title":{"rendered":"When H8 Crimes Are Thought Crimes"},"content":{"rendered":"

     Felonies, unlike almost all misdemeanors, carries penalties that can result in permanent removal of Constitutional rights. While in the United States \u201chate speech\u201d or expressions of animus against people based on some protected class due to the 1st<\/sup> Amendment still being a thing, criminal enhancements are legal and can even turn a minor misdemeanor into a felony. Case in point: A \u201cburnout\u201d leaving tire marks on the road is a felony<\/a> when that road is rainbow colored.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOn Monday, Jerich was seen by witnesses, and recorded on a cellphone, doing what appeared to be an intentional \u2018burnout\u2019 with his vehicle over the LGBTQ pride crosswalk at the intersection of NE 1st Street and NE 2nd Avenue.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis caused the vehicle to create significant damage to the streetscape painting.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Kudos to the Delray Beach Police Department for swiftly identifying and arresting this hateful criminal,\u2019 said PBCHRC [Palm Beach County Human Rights Council] President and Founder Rand Hoch. \u2018PBCHRC has requested the charges include defacing a memorial — a recently enacted law which would require this crime to be treated as a felony. If convicted of this offense, the perpetrator would be responsible for reimbursing the City of Delray Beach for the cost of repairing the damages in addition the severe penalties for committing a felony\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

     Now, motive and animus are indeed things that ought to be considered when it comes to a trial and, if convicted, sentencing. However it becomes concerning when an expression of \u201cH8\u201d basically makes it a completely different crime and even level of crime. The only difference between the two is the expression of \u201cH8\u201d which is in and of itself Constitutionally protected, thus surreptitiously making \u201cH8\u201d speech a crime by hiding it as an \u201cenhancement\u201d.<\/p>\n

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     To make matters worse, the application of such laws laws in regards to \u201canimus\u201d is not content neutral, with \u201csome\u2026 more equal than others\u201d. How many statues and memorials in New York were defaced or torn down by mobs in the past year and a half? How many prosecutions didn\u2019t have any enhancement even though the vandals were brimming with racial hatred, assuming the city bothered to prosecute anyone? \u00a0 Yet vandalizing a statue of George Floyd<\/a> will result in vigorous punishment.<\/p>\n

     It is this unequal application of the law<\/a> that demonstrates best why such \u201cenhanced\u201d charges, and it also demonstrates who has actual<\/em> \u201csystemic privilege and power\u201d.<\/p>\n

     There is no better demonstration of this than the Portland police assuring people, in the clear hopes of avoiding yet another riot, that the person a police officer shot was just a White person<\/a>, and thus isn\u2019t worth rioting over<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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We are in the early stages of the investigation. PPB appreciates the community\u2019s patience as we gather information. @ChiefCLovell<\/a> is on scene.<\/p>\n

— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) June 25, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n