Number of California hate crimes drop, but more target Jews, Muslims and LGBTQ communities

Reported hate crime events in California decreased by 7.1% in 2023 compared to the previous year, with such crimes based on sexual orientation rising by 4.1% and those against Black residents decreasing by 20.6%, according to a report released today in Los Angeles by California Attorney General Rob Bonta.

“While it is heartening to see an overall decrease in hate crimes in 2023, some of our communities, including our LGBTQ+, Jewish and Muslim communities, continue to be targeted and endangered by hate at alarming rates,” Bonta said in a statement.

Bonta said that in conjunction with the report’s release, he issued an updated bulletin to law enforcement agencies throughout the state with a revised summary of state laws targeting hate crimes and hate-motivated acts.

“The California Department of Justice has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to hate and will continue working with law enforcement, elected leaders and community organizations across the state to keep our communities safe through education, prevention, and enforcement,” he said.

“An attack against one of us is an attack against all of us — there is no place for hate in California,” Bonta added.

According to the report, the overall number of reported hate crime events in the state decreased from 2,474 in 2022 to 2,303 last year. Black people were the most commonly targeted group, despite a decrease from 652 reported crimes in 2022 to 518 in 2023, the report said.

Sexual-orientation-based hate crime events increased from 391 in 2022 to 405 last year. Anti-transgender bias events increased by 10.2% from 59 reported crimes in 2022 to 65 in 2023, and anti-LGBTQ+ bias events increased by 86.4% last year from 2022, according to the report.

It found that anti-Jewish bias crimes rose from 189 in 2022 to 289 last year, an increase of 52.9%. Anti-Islamic — Muslim — hate crimes increased from 25 in 2022 to 40 in 2023.

Notably, hate crime events targeting Asians — who became frequent hate targets during the COVID-19 pandemic — fell between 2022 and 2023, dropping by 10.71% from 140 in 2022 to 125 last year, the report showed.

Hate crime events are defined as single occurrences that could potentially involve multiple hate crime offenses, according to the AG’s Office.

The report found that the number of hate crimes referred for prosecution in the state increased from 647 in 2022 to 679 in 2023.