All of us have protected characteristics in law, more than one will apply to you, they are:
- Disability
- Race
- Religion/Belief
- Pregnancy/Maternity
- Marriage/Civil Partnership
- Gender
- Gender Identity
- Age
- Sexual orientation
Some people are victimised, abused or harmed because of who they are, an aspect of their identity.
A lot of people worry about reporting hate crime to the police because they are worried about their privacy or think that they may not be believed. We actively encourage people to report hate crime and hate incidents so that we can monitor where there are gaps in reporting and who may need more information and support.
We have strict guidelines for working with hate crime/hate incidents.
The eligibility criteria are seen below:
An out of court disposal for a hate crime is only appropriate where the following conditions are met:
- The offence is not one which is indictable only (unless approved by CPS).
- The offence does not involve conduct likely to stir up hatred, or intended to stir up hatred, towards other groups.
- The offender has made a full admission and has not raised the possibility of a defence, for example in the case of assault self-defence.
- The offender shows genuine remorse.
- The offender has no relevant previous hate crime history, or links to any other relevant offending behaviour which indicates that an out of court disposal would be ineffective. (Local records should be checked for any previous out of court disposals.)
- The offender is not a known member of an extremist organisation
- The offender has not committed a serious offence. The starting point for assessing seriousness is to consider the likely penalty if the matter went to court. Where the circumstances of the offence indicate that an immediate custodial sentence or high level community order is the appropriate sentence then an out of court disposal should not be offered. .
- The express wishes of the victim are met by dealing with the matter out of court after the victim has been provided with a full explanation of all options and their consequences. However, the final decision will always rest with the police supervisor or CPS.