NCJ Number
246471
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 54 Issue: 2 Dated: March 2014 Pages: 161-179
Date Published
March 2014
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This article examines whether hate crime laws should include adult sex offenders who have been targeted by others for their crimes against children.
Abstract
This article has two primary aims: to consider the inclusion of child sex offenders under hate crime laws, and to build on proposals to expand inclusive victim protection criteria, especially as they relate to vulnerability and difference. The article uses the outcomes of two recent cases in Australia involving pedophiles that considered the need for expanding victim inclusiveness in hate crime laws. The article begins with a discussion of hate crime laws and the justifications used for their development and implementation. This is followed by an in-depth examination of the two pedophile cases in Australia and the courts reasons for finding that hate crime laws are not the proper venue for protecting these individuals from vigilantism and violence. The final section of the article discusses the need for making the victim protection criteria in hate crime laws more inclusive especially for groups with higher degrees of vulnerability. References