RCMP Gazette Human Rights and Policing - Alberta Hate Crimes ...

RCMP huMAN SubMiSSiON RiGhTShuMANAND POliCiNGRiGhTS AND POliCiNGB.C. Hate Crime Team fights hatredwith educationby Sgt Sean McGowanRCMP b.C. hate Crime TeamThe RCMP Hate Crime Team in BritishColumbia is an integrated unit created in1996 with a mandate to ensure the effectiveidentification, investigation and prosecutionof crimes motivated by hate.Hate crimes are offences that strikeat the very cohesiveness of society. Oftenindividuals and groups are targeted solely onthe basis of who they are, and not because ofanything they have done.The impact of these crimes extendsbeyond the initial victims and creates fearin the broader communities.These crimes can lead to socialtensions between individuals, groups, thepolice and other government agencies,thereby furthering the destructive aimsand objectives of those who encourage andpromote hatred. Hate crimes are diverse,engender repetition by others and inciteretaliation.If left unchecked, these crimes canincrease in their severity and may result inan escalation in social tensions betweendifferent groups, which can destroy theharmony in our communities.The B.C. Hate Crime Team realizesthat to effectively fight hate and bias crime,partnerships are critical.The B.C. Hate Crime Team is made upof the RCMP, the New Westminster PoliceService, the B.C. Ministry of Citizen’sServices, the B.C. Ministry of Public Safetyand Solicitor General, Crown Counsel andthe Attorney General’s Office.All these partners have a specific roleto play in combating hate in the province ofBritish Columbia.Between 1996 and 2002, the team’sprimary focus was public education.Because only a small percentage of hatecrimes are reported to police, the teamworked with the communities to build thetrust needed for people to come forwardand report these crimes. Since 2002,the Hate Crime Team uses a four-stepapproach to tackling hate crime: publiceducation (working with communities),police education, intelligence gathering andproviding expertise in investigations.Front-line officersPolice officers on the front line play asignificant role in combating hate, andmuch of the B.C. Hate Crime Team’s effortis spent addressing this issue.Two of the team’s full-time investigatorsdeliver presentations to other police acrossthe province.If a police officer responding to a hatecrime doesn’t recognize the key indicatorsof hate-motivated crime, if the crime is nottreated appropriately by investigators orbrought to the attention of the B.C. HateCrime Team, and if the true motivation ofthe crime is not identified, the legislationwithin the Criminal Code to deal with hatecrime effectively may not be applied.PartnersThe Crown Counsel assigned to the hatecrime team provides legal advice to theinvestigators and assists the local CrownCounsel in making the decision to lay hatepropaganda charges and putting togetherhate crime sentencing packages once anoffender is convicted of a hate crime.Another integral partner is theMulticulturalism and Inclusive CommunitiesOffice, which is responsible for thegovernment’s multiculturalism and antiracismprogram.The program is carried out throughgrants authorized by the MulticulturalismAct. It aims to prevent and eliminate racismby enhancing community understanding ofmulticulturalism and cultural diversity inBritish Columbia.The Act outlines government policyspecifically to create a society where thereare no impediments to the full and freeparticipation of all British Columbians inthe economic, social, cultural and politicallife of the province.The province has a strong commitmentto the Act. It has created the CriticalIncident Response Model (CIRM), a threestep,three-year program that supportscommunities to develop locally designedresponse and prevention strategies andprotocols to counter incidents of racismand hate.This program has proven its value andworth on several occasions, most recentlyin Courtney, B.C., where an assault ofa black man by three white men wasvideotaped and posted to YouTube. Theincident received much national attention.Courtney was already in the CIRMprogram and had developed a communityprotocol on how to deal with an incident ofracism or hate.By bringing together a representativeof the CIRM group with RCMP inCourtney, an appropriate media responsewas developed, which diffused anger andconcerns in the community.legislationWhat many police officers and members ofthe public do not know is that the CriminalCode of Canada has several sections thatdeal specifically with hate.These sections include the HatePropaganda Sections, 318 (AdvocatingGenocide) and 319 (Public Incitement ofHatred and the Wilful Promotion of Hatred).Sections 320 and 320.1, both warrant ofseizure sections, deal specifically with hatepropaganda. Section 430.(4.1)(Mischief toReligious Property) speaks directly to theoffence being motivated by hate, prejudiceor bias based on religion, race, colour ornational or ethnic origin.One of the most powerful pieces oflegislation is Section 718.2, the greaterpunishment section, which gives the courtthe ability to impose a greater sentenceon an individual if the judge believes theoffence was motivated by hate.The B.C. Hate Crime Team assisted inthe recent investigation and conviction ofMichael Kandola, who plead guilty to assaultcausing bodily harm, which was motivated12Gazette Vol. 72, No. 3, 2010