FBI probing fire, slur at Black Indiana councilman’s home
A fire that badly damaged a Black city council member’s home in eastern Indiana is being investigated by the FBI after a racial slur was found spray painted at the house.
Hate Crimes
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Court denies Dylann Roof’s request for new appellate hearing
Dylann Roof has lost the next phase of his appeal, with a federal court turning down his request for a new hearing to challenge his death sentence and conviction in the 2015 racist slayings of nine members of a Black South Carolina congregation.
Op-ed: Mears: Federal law is an important step in improving hate crimes investigations
Crimes of violence leave victims and families devastated, confused and angry. When the crime is motivated by hate, the impact can be far greater, leaving entire communities in fear.
Dylann Roof seeks rehearing on church shooting conviction
Dylann Roof has filed the next step in his federal appeal, challenging a court’s confirmation of his conviction and death sentence for the 2015 racist slayings of nine members of a Black South Carolina congregation.
Hate crimes hotline launched for Marion County residents
A non-emergency hate crimes hotline has been launched to serve Hoosiers living in Marion County. The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office announced the new resource on Monday.
Report: Hate crime laws lack uniformity across the US
More than half a century since they were modernized, hate crime laws in the U.S. are inconsistent and provide incomplete methods for addressing bias-motivated violence, according to a new report by advocates for better protections.
Man pleads guilty to 4 Asian spa killings, sentenced to life
A man accused of killing eight people, most of them women of Asian descent, at Atlanta-area massage businesses pleaded guilty Tuesday to four of the murders and was handed four sentences of life without parole.
Indianapolis man gets 46 months for hate crime at neighbor
An Indianapolis man was sentenced to nearly four years in prison Friday after pleading guilty to federal hate crime and weapons charges for threatening a Black neighbor, prosecutors said.
Charleston church shooter making appellate arguments
The man on federal death row for the racist slayings of nine members of a Black South Carolina congregation is making his appellate argument that his conviction and death sentence should be overturned.
Student’s arrest for racist post sparks free speech debate
The arrest of a Connecticut high school student accused of posting racist comments about a Black classmate on social media is being supported by civil rights advocates, but free speech groups are calling it an unusual move by police that raises First Amendment issues.
Sikh group wants probe of gunman’s possible supremacist link
A Sikh civil rights organization called on law enforcement Tuesday to investigate whether a former FedEx employee who fatally shot eight people — four of them Sikhs — at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis last week had any ties to hate groups.
Voting rights, hate crimes on Senate’s “big, bold” agenda
Wrapping up the most tumultuous Senate start in recent memory, new Majority Leader Chuck Schumer took stock of accomplishments including the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 rescue while vowing action ahead on voting rights, hate crimes and mounting Democratic priorities hitting stiff opposition from Republicans.
Lawmakers press Big Tech CEOs on speech responsibility
The CEOs of tech giants Facebook, Twitter and Google faced a grilling Thursday in Congress as lawmakers tried to draw them into acknowledging their companies’ roles in fueling the January insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and rising COVID-19 vaccine misinformation.
Police: Georgia spa murders suspect may have ‘sexual addiction’
A white man accused of killing eight people, most of whom were of Asian descent, at massage parlors in the Atlanta area told police the attack was not racially motivated and that he potentially had a “sexual addiction,” officials said Wednesday.
Takeaways: What hearings have revealed about Jan. 6 failures
Many questions remain unanswered about the failure to prevent the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. But after six congressional hearings, it’s clear that the Capitol Police were unprepared and overwhelmed as hundreds of Donald Trump’s supporters laid siege to the building. It’s also clear that no one wants to take responsibility for it.
Indianapolis man pleads guilty to hate crime at neighbor
An Indianapolis man has pleaded guilty to federal hate crime and weapons charges after threatening a Black neighbor.
Law enforcement reform bill advances with bipartisan support
A bipartisan bill aimed at increasing police accountability and enacting criminal justice reform advanced to the Indiana Senate after lawmakers unanimously approved the measure in a House vote Tuesday.
Trump takes no responsibility for riot as he heads to Texas
President Donald Trump on Tuesday took no responsibility for his part in fomenting a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol last week, despite his comments encouraging supporters to march on the Capitol and praise for them while they were still carrying out the assault. “People thought that what I said was totally appropriate,” Trump said.
FBI: Purdue student, white supremacists plotted attack on US power grid
White supremacists plotted to attack power stations in the southeastern U.S., and an Ohio teenager who allegedly shared the plan said he wanted the group to be “operational” on a fast-tracked timeline if President Donald Trump were to lose his re-election bid, the FBI alleges in an affidavit that was mistakenly unsealed.
Hate crimes in US reach highest level in more than a decade
Hate crimes in the United States rose to the highest level in more than a decade as federal officials also recorded the highest number of hate-motivated killings since the FBI began collecting that data in the early 1990s, according to an FBI report released Monday.