Girls Face Felony ‘Hate Crimes’ Charge for Passing Out Anti-Homosexual Fliers

The following are two newspaper accounts of an alleged “hate crime” involving the distribution of anti-homosexuality-oriented fliers by two teenaged girls in Crystal Lake, Illinois. We have not seen the fliers (which were not made available by the police) and are trying to find out more about this case. Note the Tribune story, which reports that the girls face a felony “hate crimes” charge. Illinois’ “hate crimes” law includes “sexual orientation”: 

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Chicago, Illinois, May 16, 2007

Teens face hate-crime charge for anti-gay flier

CRYSTAL LAKE — Two Crystal Lake girls were charged with a felony hate crime for making a flier with derogatory statements about homosexuality and distributing them at a school, authorities said Tuesday

The 16-year-olds were arrested by Crystal Lake police about 1:45 p.m. Friday after they distributed about 40 fliers in the student parking lot at Crystal Lake South High School, 1200 S. McHenry Ave., Crystal Lake.

The fliers had a photograph of two males kissing and included “words of an inflammatory nature,” said Police Chief Dave Linder. One male in the photo was identified, Linder said.

The girls were charged with a hate crime because the fliers “were not written for informational purposes but rather were to incite a breach of peace or cause injury to the person or persons the message was directed against,” said Thomas Carroll, McHenry County first assistant state’s attorney.

They were also charged with disorderly conduct and obstructing a police officer, and one teen faces an additional charge of resisting a police officer.

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Northwest Herald, May 16, 2007 

2 CL teens charged with hate crime

CRYSTAL LAKE – Two 16-year-old Crystal Lake girls were expected in juvenile court Tuesday on hate-crime charges for allegedly printing and distributing fliers with pictures of two boys kissing and inflammatory statements about homosexuality.

The girls, both of whom are students at Crystal Lake South High School and whose names were not released because of their ages, were arrested Friday, Crystal Lake Police Chief Dave Linder said. One of the boys on the flier is a student at the school.

When an officer tried to stop the girls from distributing the fliers in a school parking lot, they climbed a fence and ran, Linder said.

Both girls face charges of committing a hate crime, disorderly conduct, and obstructing justice. One girl also was charged with resisting arrest.

Under Illinois law, a person commits a hate crime when he or she commits a crime against another person based on that person’s race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities or national origin. –- Regan Foster