United States v. Cruikshank

A hate, or bias, crime is a verbal or physical assault against a person who is intentionally selected on the basis of their race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, national origin, or disability. Examples include defacing a Jewish synagogue with anti-Semitic symbols, attacking persons who are believed to be gay, or breaking the windows of a Chinese restaurant. Offenses involving such bias-inspired conduct is thought to inflict greater individual and societal harm than other offenses.

Spurred by the rise of hate incidents during the 1980s, approximately 30 states passed laws defining hate crimes. One type of law treats hate crime as distinct offenses with stiff penalties. Another form applies enhanced penalties, such as higher fines and longer jail terms, to existing laws for transgressions specifically motivated by prejudice. At the national level, the Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990 requires the Federal Bureau of Investigation to collect hate crime statistics.

To avoid infringing on First Amendment protections, hate crime laws may not be so sweeping that they criminalize expressive conduct which cause only hurt feelings or resentment. Laws also may not target a specific subject of speech or restrict a person's thoughts or beliefs. They can take racial bias or other prejudice into account, however, when it motivates illegal action.