Assessment of Hate Crime Offenders: The Role of Bias Intent in Examining Violence Risk

This study investigated the criminal histories and violence risk of a sample of 204 hate crime offenders. Record review of the offender’s criminal history was rated on the HCR-20 and Cormier-Lang scales. Crime reports were rated for the severity of the bias offense on the Victim Functional Impact scale and the offender’s targeting of outgroup victims–i.e., the bias intent. Findings indicated that 56% of the offenders had prior criminal convictions; HCR-20 ratings were comparable to those found in other offender groups and were correlated with ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Edward Dunbar is affiliated with Pacific Psychological Associates. Jary Quinones is a PhD candidate affiliated with the Los Angeles Police Department. Desiree A. Crevecoeur is a PhD candidate affiliated with the University of California Los Angeles. Address correspondence to: Edward Dunbar, Department of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles,CA90024USA(E-mail: edunbar@ucla. edu). Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, Vol. 5(1) 2005 http://www.haworthpress.com/web/JFPP © 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Digital Object Identifier: 10.1300/J158v05n01_01 1 the severity of the hate crime. The severity of the criminal history as measured on the Cormier-Lang scale, the number of prior arrests, and number of criminal convictions were significantly greater for offenders who targeted racial minority victims. Offenders who belonged to bias oriented groups had more extensive and violent criminal histories and committed more severe hate crimes. Findings are considered in terms of clinical intervention and risk assessment practices with hate crime offenders. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: Website: © 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]