City Hate-Crime Law Proposed : Government: Spurred by a spate of ugly incidents, Councilman Behr urges San Diego to pass its own ordinance.

San Diego City Councilman Tom Behr called on the City Council Monday to enact a hate-crimes ordinance.

The request follows three incidents last month that police are investigating as hate crimes. The incidents include the beating of two students visiting from Japan, spray paint vandalism at a synagogue in La Jolla and the burning of a cross on the front lawn of an African-American family in Mira Mesa.

Local law enforcement agencies and courts rely on state hate-crime laws.

In addition, Behr said, criminals convicted of crimes motivated by discrimination of race, ethnicity, gender, religion or sexual preference should be held criminally accountable for injury and property damage resulting from the crime.

Behr said he hopes a city ordinance will also establish standards for determining hate crimes. Behr will suggest provisions that require police to compile hate-crime statistics and notify the mayor, council and Human Relations Commission within three days of reported incidents.

The city manager, city attorney and the Human Relations Commission will draft an ordinance proposal, which is to be submitted to the council within three weeks.