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Los Angeles Police Department officials Tuesday reported a substantial increase of antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate crimes, mirroring the national trend since the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas
During Tuesday’s Board of Police Commissioners meeting, LAPD officials reported antisemitic hate crimes rose from 100 in 2022 to 142 in 2023, an increase of 42%, while anti-Muslim crimes rose from 10 in last year to 22 in 2023, an increase of 120%.
Although officials did not provide a reason for the increase, it has been reported that the terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7 by Hamas and the ensuing war between Israel and Hamas played a significant role in these hate incidents and hate crimes happening more frequently in the U.S.
While officials said they have received an increase of reports regarding these types of crimes, they noted that more are not reported due to lack of trust in police or the justice system, not waiting for police to arrive to complete reports, a desire by some people to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation and not knowing how to properly report these crimes.
In an attempt to make it easier to report hate crimes and incidents, the department will have an Online Reporting System beginning in early 2024.
LAPD policy differentiates hate crimes and hate incidents — the latter being defined as a bias motivated non-criminal acts. The Online Reporting System will be an additional way for the public to report should they not want to go to a police station.
According to officials, once a report is made online, a Department Operations Center staff member will review the report and categorize it appropriately.
If it is a hate crime, the department will work to meet with the individual who filed the report, document details and begin an investigation. A hate incident would be recorded, aiding the department to better understand trends in the area where it took place.
Hate incidents will have a 30-day response period and hate crimes are expected to have a 10-day response period, officers said.
The goal is to use hate incident data to be proactive, inform the public and attempt to deter hate crimes from occurring or escalating, according to officials.
Officials said implementing an online system is a move to ensure recent changes in department policy to document and better report on hate incidents and hate crimes.
