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Lessons from a Hate Crime Detective

Abstract: Police Detective Ellen Vest of the San Diego Sheriff's Department has been battling a dramatic rise in skin-head activity and hate crimes over the course of her 29-year career, and she is determined to win. In this short film, Vest shares her lessons learned with incoming police cadets, demonstrating how to identify, investigate, and address hate crimes before they escalate to violence. Follow Vest as she visits Sylvester, an African-American hate crime victim now permanently brain damaged after a vicious attack by a known skinhead, and as Vest shares the evidence she gathered to convict Sylvester's assailant of a hate crime. Underscoring that hate crimes are "message crimes" that impact entire communities, Vest encourages officers to reach out to victims and their communities as important allies in hate crime prevention. This film is part of the Working Together for Safe, Inclusive Communities Initiative, a collaboration between Not In Our Town and the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. This free resource is available for law enforcement agencies to use in their communities.

Product ID: COPS-CD046
Publication Date: 03/12/2015
Author(s): NIOT

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