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When a Crime Committed by a Teenager Becomes a Hate Crime

Results From Two Studies

Northeastern University

Gordana Rabrenovic

Northeastern University

Vincent Ferraro

Northeastern University

Tara Doran

Northeastern University

Daniela Methe

Northeastern University

This article examines the conditions under which a crime committed by a teenager comes to be viewed as a hate-motivated offense. In Study 1, the age of the perpetrator and the level of evidence were experimentally manipulated for male and female subjects. The dependent variable consisted of the likelihood that an interracial encounter was a hate crime. Our results suggest that female subjects were significantly more likely than their male counterparts to view the offense as a hate crime. In addition, we found significant differences in the influence of various forms of evidence. The difference was nonsignificant between the teenage and adult offenders. In Study 2, we content analyzed hate crime prosecutions as reported in major newspapers. Surprisingly, our results indicate that many teens were prosecuted and convicted on a hate crime charge. Studies 1 and 2 collectively suggest that teenage hate crime defendants are no longer the recipients of lenient treatment by the courts or in the court of public opinion.

Key Words: hate crime • bias • prosecution

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