Hate Crimes
According to the FBI website, a hate crime is a traditional criminal offense with an added element of bias. It is treated as a civil rights violation rather than a federal crime. For purposes of tracking statistics, Congress defines a hate crime as a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation.”
Within the State of Missouri, if certain criminal activity is “knowingly motivated because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation [including gender identity], or disability of the victim or victims”, the crime is considered more serious and the criminal penalties may be increased.
Hate crimes should be reported to campus or Columbia police. CALL 911 if it is an emergency or MU Police at 573-882-7201 (on campus) or Columbia Police at 573-874-7652 (off-campus). If you submit a Bias Incident Report regarding a crime that is motivated by bias, the MU Equity Office is required to notify the MU Police.
Very few hate crimes actually get reported. To view the University’s Clery report, visit the MUPD website.