Wider Definition of Hate Crimes Urged
From Times Wire Reports
Atty. Gen. Janet Reno urged Congress to pass legislation expanding the definition of federal hate crimes as the FBI reported 8,759 such incidents in 1996. Law enforcement agencies across the country reported 5,396 hate crimes based on race, 1,401 based on religion, 1,016 on sexual orientation, 940 on ethnic background and six for multiple reasons. “These statistics show what we long believed is true: Hate crimes have long gone underreported,” Reno said at a news conference in Washington.
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