Four Questions and Answers about Hate Crimes in Utah

With tensions rising in seemingly every area of life, it’s not a surprise that criminal charges for hate crimes have also increased. According to statistics from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, there were 46 hate crime incidents in Utah in 2020. In 2019 there were only 18. One of the major factors in determining whether a crime is charged as a hate crime is intent. Fighting against accusations based on your intent can be difficult, but the expert criminal defense lawyers at Brown, Bradshaw and Moffat can help. Below are three questions you may have about hate crimes and the associated charges in Utah.

1. What types of hate crimes are there?

The FBI’s UCR breaks down hate crimes into three categories:

Crimes against persons
Crimes against property
Crimes against society

Additionally, the FBI breaks down the types of crimes into six bias categories:

Race/ethnicity/ancestry
Religion
Sexual orientation
Disability
Gender
Gender identity

2. What is considered a hate crime in Utah?

A hate crime in Utah* must check both of the boxes below:

Committing a “primary offense”
With the intent to “intimidate or terrorize” another person or with reason to believe that the action would intimidate or terrorize

Primary Offenses

A primary offense is considered a misdemeanor offense for the following crimes:

assault
property destruction
criminal trespass
theft
obstructing government operations
interfering with activities of colleges and universities
offenses against public order and decency
telephone abuse
cruelty to animals
weapons offenses
disorderly conduct at an official meeting

Intimidate or Terrorize

To intimidate or terrorize is defined as the following:

An act which causes a person to fear for their physical safety or damages the property of that person or another. The act must be accompanied with the intent to cause or has the effect of causing a person to reasonably fear to freely exercise or enjoy any right secured by the Constitution or laws of the state or by the Constitution or laws of the United States.

*The information in this section is a summary of the Utah code. For the full details, see the website.

3. What are the penalties for committing a hate crime in Utah?

Committing a hate crime increases the penalty/severity of the primary offense charges by one degree. For example

A class C misdemeanor primary offense is a class B misdemeanor
A class B misdemeanor primary offense is a class A misdemeanor

4. How do I find a defense lawyer for hate crimes in Utah?

If you have committed a crime that was deemed a hate crime, it is crucial that you find an experienced defense lawyer to help with your case. Since proving intent to terrorize is crucial to the prosecution of these crimes, prosecutors may push for charges that don’t accurately represent your intent. The defense lawyers at Brown, Bradshaw and Moffat have decades of experience fighting back against criminal hate crime charges and are ready to work on your defense.

Contact us at (801) 532-5297 if you have questions about your hate crime charges or if you want to get started on your defense.

Property Crimes in Utah: What Are My Rights?

Even if you have been charged with what you feel is minor damage to property, law enforcement has plenty of tactics to investigate and prosecute property crimes and give punishments that seem more severe than the crime. This is partly because it’s common for law enforcement to use the criminal justice system as a collection agency in civil disputes. Additionally, many cases of property crime stem from a dispute about property rights and overexaggerated accusations, so proving guilt isn’t always straightforward. This is why it’s important to have an experienced lawyer go through your case. If you have been charged with a property crime of any severity, there are options available. There are other options than just pleading guilty.

5 Quick Facts about the Utah Medical Cannabis Act

In Utah, the Medical Cannabis Act allows individuals to acquire, use, and sell cannabis legally for certain medical conditions. While it’s legal to use cannabis under this act, there are still plenty of details within the law that may affect those who have a legal right to use cannabis in the state.

The Importance of an Experienced Marijuana Defense Attorney

As you may know, Utah continues to strictly enforce and prosecute marijuana crimes. You can take a vacation to a state where marijuana is legal and enjoy it there, but as long as you live in Utah, law enforcement wants what happens outside Utah to stay outside Utah.If you choose to risk it and use marijuana in Utah, it’s important to be prepared with the contact information of an experienced marijuana defense attorney. Here are a few circumstances to keep in mind that could lead to you needing to make that call.