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Police Define "Hate Crimes"

Police accusations, not hard evidence, can create "hate crimes" of verbal "intimidation"

by Rev. Ted Pike

The scene is ugly. The police have arrived at an apartment house where three homosexual men loudly, even tearfully allege that a Christian has "intimidated" them. They claim he called them "perverts" and said he has friends in church who are going to "knock sense into them."

The police question the Christian. He admits to quoting Lev.18: 22 that sodomy is an "abomination," but truthfully denies any hint of physical threat. Who shall the police believe?

Under our American justice system, this case should go to court where a judge or perhaps a jury can hear both sides. Since the dispute does not involve physical evidence, a "guilty" verdict in court is essential to determine if a "speech crime", such as "verbal intimidation", even exists.

Is that what will happen? Maybe. But for the present, here is what will probably take place.

The police may find the homosexuals' detailed, impassioned testimony very convincing. They may doubt the Christian's testimony. Why? The police are probably influenced by "anti-hate sensitivity training" sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith. Through ADL-written police "anti-hate training manuals," the ADL teaches every police department in America that certain groups (such as Christians), with long-standing animosities toward other groups (homosexuals), are "biased." The ADL says that a "hate crime" is the same as a "bias crime."

In short, the police file a report that a "hate crime" of "intimidation" has occurred and the Christian is the suspect. The report, with details of the "hate crime," is then sent to the FBI. They publish it not as a suspected bias crime, but as an actual "hate crime" in their annual "Uniform Crime Report."

Meanwhile, the Christian has suffered indignity and grave injustice. Possessing no material evidence, the police have accused him of a "hate crime" merely upon allegations of complainants and investigating officers - without due process of law! The police now have a file on him as the primary suspect in a "hate crime." If not proven innocent, his 'record' can prejudice the authorities against him for the rest of his life.

In talking with "hate crimes statistics" authorities in the FBI, Oregon state police and Portland, Oregon police, I found them confident that the opinions of police, assisted by FBI/ADL guidelines, are trustworthy in determining what is "verbal intimidation" and who should be accused of it.

These law enforcement experts reasoned that just as officers can be trusted to determine when physical crimes (such as burglary, assault, etc.) occur, so they can be trusted to correctly identify "speech crimes" and their perpetrators. In fact, Portland and state police statistics experts became positively angry at my assertion that a physical crime and a speech crime are very different realities - requiring different considerations under the law.

What kind of government encourages accusers and police to determine what is criminal? It is called a police state.

The above is made even more ominous because anti-hate bill S625, "The Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2001" now before Congress, will unify federal and state "anti-hate law" enforcement, creating an "anti-hate" bureaucracy similar to that which exists in socialist countries, such as Canada and Sweden. There, the only criterion of whether a hate crime exists is whether the feelings of members of an "identifiable group" (such as homosexuals) have been hurt.

Do you want to live under such repression and fear of indictment?

There is still time for you to protest S625 to your elected Congressional representatives. If you have never written a letter, sent an email, faxed or phoned your senator or congressman, this is the time!

"Anti-hate" forces in the Senate have enough votes to pass this bill and are nearing halfway in the House. Yet, if enough concerned Americans protest now, we can hold back the anti-hate nightmare.

NATIONAL PRAYER NETWORK, P.O. Box 828, Clackamas OR 97015 www.truthtellers.org

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