Hate crime

How the CPS defines hate crime

In England and Wales the monitored strands of hate crime are:

• racially and religiously aggravated;
• homophobic, biphobic and transphobic; and 
• disability hate crime.

These strands are covered by legislation (sections 28-32 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and sections 145 and 146 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003) which allows prosecutors to apply for an uplift in sentence for those convicted of a hate crime.

The police and the CPS have agreed the following definition for identifying and flagging hate crimes:

"Any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice, based on a person's disability or perceived disability; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation or transgender identity or perceived transgender identity."

There is no legal definition of hostility so we use the everyday understanding of the word which includes ill-will, spite, contempt, prejudice, unfriendliness, antagonism, resentment and dislike.

How the CPS deals with hate crime

Once a hate crime has been reported, the police investigate whether a hate crime has been committed. They refer cases to the CPS to decide whether there should be a charge. We are responsible for preparing and presenting hate crime cases at court and applying for an increased sentence. We need enough evidence to convince the court that the crime was motivated by or demonstrated hostility.  We also work with Witness Care Units to provide information, assistance and support to victims and prosecution witnesses.

In 2020-21, 86% of hate crimes cases we prosecuted led to a conviction or guilty plea. Because of the serious nature of these offences, the CPS can apply to the courts for a 'sentence uplift' which is an increased punishment for the crime. Last year, more than half of our requests led to offenders having their sentence increased because it was motivated by hate.