U.S.

Department of Justice
Civil Rights Division

JMS:LLC:MJG:CWH:BDB
DJ 207-52-4

Special Litigation Section - PHB

950 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington DC 20530

December 16, 2014

VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL

Gail M. Lolis
Deputy County Attorney
H. Lee Dennison Building
100 Veterans Memorial Highway
P.O. Box 6100
Hauppauge, NY 11788-0099

RE:

Comments on SCPDs Updated Hate Crimes Training Curriculum

Dear Ms. Lolis:

Pursuant to the Agreement Between the Suffolk County Police Department and the
United States Department of Justice (Agreement), we write to provide the United States
comments on the Suffolk County Police Departments (SCPD) hate crimes training materials
provided in Attachment 10 to SCPDs July 2014 Compliance Report, as updated on October 14,
2014 via email. We appreciate the opportunity to provide feedback at this stage, and look
forward to meeting in January to provide additional technical assistance in person. The
following incorporates by reference our comments provided on September 22, 2014.

As mentioned in our initial comments, the training would benefit from a clearer
distinction between hate crimes and other topics covered during this training. Currently,
the order of the presentation is confusing because bias-free policing / color of law uses
some of the same key terms (e.g.,bias) as the hate crimes component of the training,
but deals with the separate issue of police conduct. We suggest starting the training by
focusing on the hate crime statute and systematically developing the hate crime topic in
full before shifting focus (ideally on a different day) to police conduct issues.

Accordingly, we suggest that the hate crime presentation contain the following
components in the following order:

-2(1) The definition of a hate crime under New York State law and the rationale for having
such a law.
a. Define key terms see below.
b. Explain clearly that the hate crimes law does not criminalize thought or prejudice;
it is a sentence-enhancing statute that increases criminal penalties for specified types
of illegal conduct.
c. Explain the rationale for enhanced penalties: the harms that a hate crime inflicts on
the broader society may go well beyond the usual harms associated with the predicate
offense in question. For example, hate-motivated vandalism may have far-reaching
implications that ordinary vandalism lacks.
(2) Adduce examples of cases that qualify as hate crimes and that illustrate key
components of the New York statute: for example, how victims are chosen, and the
substantial motivation based on beliefs about the list of protected groups that is
required for an act to be considered a hate crime.
a. Use the current slide to explain that the statute applies to a wide array of offenses
and enhances penalties.
b. Emphasize that hate crime statutes do not only protect minorities.
c. Point out the importance of high-quality police work in order to document
motivation (e.g., recording verbatim language used before or during an incident).

We recommend that you provide the full statutory definition of a hate crime under New
York State law. Currently, the presentation cites language from the federal statute. If the
appropriate statutory language were presented early on in the slide show, the slides that
followed could emphasize decision points in determining whether or not the statute
applies. For example, a slide could illustrate cases in which a perpetrator intentionally
selects a victim based on a belief or perception. Another slide might illustrate what it
means to commit an illegal act in substantial part based on a beliefregardless of
whether the belief or perception is correct.

At least one slide and possibly more should be devoted to explaining how to identify hate
crimes. What indicators should officers look for when deciding whether an incident
should be investigated as a hate crime? When does an incident escalate to the level of
hate crime? Scenarios that could trigger group discussion would be useful here. It would
be especially helpful to have a mix of scenarios that includes incidents that do not meet
the threshold of crimes (e.g., name-calling), but may instead constitute hate/bias
incidents.

Stress the importance of gathering and assessing evidence uniquely related to the hate
crime/bias incident. The evidence should be evaluated with the entire incident in mind,
and classifying hate crimes properly may require extra investigative effort. For example,

-3a victim or witness may not report an incident as a hate crime because the individual may
not be aware of the term hate crime and may not recognize that prejudice as a motive for
unlawful conduct has special legal implications. The failure of victims or witnesses to
properly identify a hate crime does not mean that a hate crime did not occur.

Describe proper reporting procedures, especially how hate crime reporting relates to the
tracking system created by SCPD pursuant to Section IV(b)(i) of the Agreement. Instruct
officers about how they should report incidents that fall short of meeting the
requirements of the statute but nevertheless might help the SCPD anticipate and deter
future conflicts.

Describe the SCPDs strategies for conducting investigations and enhancing witness
cooperation. What actions should responding offers take or not take? What constitutes
evidence? Stress the importance of even-handedness in hearing out all sides of a dispute
and applying the law in a fair-minded manner. Also stress the importance of law
enforcement officers avoiding any appearance of disdain for victims/complainants or
making unfair/inappropriate assumptions about victims, including assumptions about a
victims identity. One reason why hate crimes go unreported is that the victims fear the
police for example, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individuals may be reluctant to
report incidents to police for fear that police themselves harbor negative attitudes about
the victims gender expression. We suggest dividing this component into two sections,
one discussing strategies for improving witness cooperation and another on policing
strategies for preventing future incidents.

Describe the SCPDs strategy for preventing hate crimes. Explain how the following
may aid in SCPDs ability to handle hate crimes:
o Improved data and documentation
o Diversity sensitivity/understanding
o Improved community relations and partnerships

The training presentation could benefit by replacing words like identity motivation
with more accessible terms, like prejudice.

Although the slideshow notes report that there is not enough time to discuss the whole list
of predicate offenses that may constitute a hate crime, it makes sense to pull out the most
common types of hate crimes (for example, harassment and vandalism) and give
examples.

Experience suggests that it takes at least two hours of explanation to ensure that
participants understand what a hate crime is (and is not), how to determine whether
illustrative incidents qualify as hate crime, and what steps a police department expects or
requires regarding the handling of hate crimes and incidents.

-4Again, thank you for the opportunity to provide our comments. If you have any
questions regarding any of the documents or information that we have requested, please do not
hesitate to contact either of us at the telephone numbers below.

Sincerely,
LORETTA E. LYNCH
United States Attorney
Eastern District of New York

/s/Laura Coon
Laura Coon
Special Counsel
Special Litigation Section
Civil Rights Division
(202) 514-1089
Charles Hart
Brian Buehler
Trial Attorneys
Special Litigation Section
Civil Rights Division
Cc:

Commissioner Edward Webber

Suffolk County Police Department
Christopher Love
Compliance Coordinator
Suffolk County Police Department

By:

/s/Michael J. Goldberger
Michael J. Goldberger
Chief of Civil Rights
Civil Division
(718) 254-6052