Executive Summary

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, mainstream media outlets reported
an alarming increase in hate crimes specifcally targeting individuals who identify as Asian. Tis
increase was linked to anti-Asian rhetoric which blamed Asian communities for the spread of
COVID-19 in the United States.1

Tis research brief report addresses anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the California
Department of Justice (DOJ) since 2016, with a specifc focus on hate crimes events committed
in 2020.2 As mandated by Penal Code (PC) section 13023, California law enforcement agencies
(LEAs) are required to report information on hate crimes to the DOJ. In 2015, the DOJ expanded
the race and ethnicity hate crime bias category for the California hate crime data collection
system to include Native Hawaiian or other Pacifc Islander. As a result of this expansion, LEAs
report hate crimes motivated by a bias towards Native Hawaiian or Pacifc Islanders separately
from hate crimes motivated by a bias towards Asians. For hate crime data reporting purposes,
Asian refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast
Asia, or the Indian subcontinent. Troughout this research brief report the term “anti-Asian hate
crime events” or “anti-Asian hate crimes” refers to events classifed by LEAs as motivated by an
anti-Asian bias. Tis research brief report analyzes the data reported by LEAs according to the
most serious criminal ofense committed in each hate crime event. Te data used for this report
is also available on the DOJ’s OpenJustice Data Portal. Te DOJ recognizes that hate crimes in the
state are generally underreported and that the data presented in this report may not adequately
refect the actual number of hate crimes occurring in the state that were never reported to LEAs.
Tis research brief report focuses solely on reported hate crimes which are criminal acts
committed, in whole or in part, because of a victim's actual or perceived disability, gender,
nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or association with someone with one
or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. Hate incidents which are actions or behavior
motivated by hate such as name-calling or distribution of materials with hate messages in public
places are not included. While these acts are harmful, they are legally protected by the First
Amendment right to freedom of expression and do not rise to the level of a criminal ofense
under California law. However, it is important to note that these incidents have a traumatic
impact on victims and communities at large. If a hate incident begins to threaten a person or
property, it may become a hate crime.

Anti-Native Hawaiian or Pacifc Islander hate crime events reported to the DOJ have decreased
since 2016. In 2019 and 2020, there were zero reports of anti-Native Hawaiian and other Pacifc
Islander hate crime events. However, we should caution that this fnding does not mean that

1
Ali Rogin and Amna Nawaz, “ ‘We Have Been Trough Tis Before.’ Why Anti-Asian Hate Crimes are Rising Amid
Coronavirus,” PBS, June 25, 2020, available at: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/we-have-been-through-this-before-why-
anti-asian-hate-crimes-are-rising-amid-coronavirus.
2
California PC section 422.55 defnes hate crimes as a criminal act committed in whole or in part because of a victim’s actual or
perceived disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or association with someone with one or
more of these actual or perceived characteristics.

1
Native Hawaiian or Pacifc Islander people were not targeted in attacks, but that there were no
reported hate crime events where it was found that the ofender was motivated by an animosity
towards Pacifc Islanders in 2019 and 2020. Because of the increase in anti-Asian hate crime
events reported to the DOJ in 2020 along with no reports of hate crimes motivated by bias
towards Native Hawaiian or Pacifc Islander in 2019 and 2020, this report presents information on
anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the DOJ in the previous fve years.

An analysis of hate crime events motivated by an anti-Asian bias reported to the DOJ in the last
fve years (2016 through 2020) found that:
• Te number of reported anti-Asian hate crime events in California has increased since 2016
■ Te number of reported anti-Asian hate crime events increased by 107% in 2020, from 43
in 2019 to 89 in 2020.
■ Te highest number of anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the DOJ occurred in
March and April 2020 as California declared a state of emergency to help prevent the
spread of COVID-19.
• Overall, the most common kind of anti-Asian hate crime reported across years 2016 and 2020
was violent crime, with a 125% increase from 32 in 2019 to 72 in 2020.
■ Simple assault and intimidation were the most common type of violent crimes reported to
the DOJ across the fve-year span.
• Te number of reported anti-Asian property hate crime events (arson, burglary, destruction,
damage, vandalism) increased by 55% in 2020; from 11 in 2019 to 17 in 2020.
■ For years 2016 to 2020, property damage was the most common type of property crimes
reported to the DOJ.

• Taking into consideration data reported to the DOJ since 2016:

■ Anti-Asian hate crime events commonly targeted individuals as opposed to organizations
or businesses, with the majority of individuals targeted being adults over the age of 18.
■ Te highest number of persons victimized in anti-Asian hate crime events were reported
to the DOJ in 2020. A total of 101 individuals were targeted in attacks reported in 2020,
representing an increase of 102% from 2019 where 50 people were reported as victims in
hate crime events.
■ In 2020, individuals were victimized in 18 diferent California counties. Of those counties,
San Luis Obispo County had the highest rate of victimization per 10,000 Asian residents
(the share of the population most vulnerable to anti-Asian hate crime events). Alameda
County had the lowest victimization rate per 10,000 residents.

2
Introduction
Shortly afer the United States was placed under stay-at-home orders due to the COVID-19
pandemic, media reports signaled an alarming increase in hate incidents and hate crimes
targeting Asian communities (specifcally, ethnic groups with origins in East Asia, Southeast Asia,
or the Indian subcontinent).3, 4, 5 In March 2020, the Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center began to
formally record and publish reports on hate incidents and hate crimes committed against Asians
and Pacifc Islanders to document the increase in attacks.6, 7 Te rise in bias-motivated attacks
against Asians during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic is part of a long history of similar
attacks against members of Asian communities dating back to the nineteenth century.

Literature Review
Recent academic journal articles have highlighted how attacks against Asians during the
COVID-19 pandemic are a part of a long history of discrimination against Asian communities in
the United States. Asian Americans are ofen stereotyped as perpetual foreigners, anti-American,
and carriers of infectious disease. Tese stereotypes in turn have fueled racist beliefs that Asians
are responsible for introducing COVID-19 to the United States.8, 9, 10 In addition, commonly-held
stereotypes of Asian Americans ofen ignore the ethnic diversity that exists within these racial
and ethnic groups. Perpetrators of anti-Asian violence may see all as foreign and threatening
regardless of whether “…the person is from China, of Chinese origin, or simply looks Asian…,”
making all Asian people vulnerable to hate crimes.11

3
Esther Yoon-Ji Kang, “Asian Americans Feel the Bite of Prejudice During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” NPR, March 31, 2020,
available at: https://www.npr.org/local/309/2020/03/31/824397216/asian-americans-feel-the-bite-of-prejudice-during-the-c-o-v-i-
d-19-pandemic.
4
Ali Rogin and Amna Nawaz, “‘We Have Been Trough Tis Before.’ Why Anti-Asian Hate Crimes are Rising Amid Coronavirus,”
PBS, June 25, 2020, available at: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/we-have-been-through-this-before-why-anti-asian-hate-
crimes-are-rising-amid-coronavirus. Rogin and Nawaz, “‘We Have Been Trough Tis Before.’”
5
Defnitions for Asian follow defnitions provided on the U.S. Census Bureau website: https://www.census.gov/topics/population/
race/about.html.
6
Asian Pacifc Policy & Planning Council, “Asian American Pacifc Islander (AAPI) Civil Rights Organizations Establishes Stop
AAPI Hate Reporting Center,” A3PCON, March 19, 2020, available at: http://www.asianpacifcpolicyandplanningcouncil.org/
asian-american-pacifc-islander-aapi-civil-rights-organizations-establishes-stop-aapi-hate-reporting-center/.
7
Kara Takasaki, “Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center: A Model of Collective Leadership and Community Advocacy,” Journal of
Asian American Studies, Volume 23, Number 3, 2020, pp. 341-342.
8
Hannah Tessler, Meera Choi, and Grace Kao, “Te Anxiety of Being Asian American: Hate Crimes and Negative Biases During
the COVID-19 Pandemic,” American Journal of Criminal Justice, 45: 636-646, 2020.
9
Angela R. Gover, Shannon B. Harper, and Lynn Langton, “Anti-Asian Hate Crime during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring
the Reproduction of Inequality,” American Journal of Criminal Justice, 45, 2020, p. 651.
Yao Li and Harvey L. Nicholson Jr., “When ‘Model Minorities’ Become ‘Yellow Peril’ – Othering and the Racialization of Asian
10

Americans in the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Sociology Compass, 2021:1-13, 2021.

11
Tessler et al., “Te Anxiety of Being Asian American,” p. 642.

3
Academic scholars have also demonstrated how politicians and mainstream media further
perpetuated the notion that China, and by extension Chinese people, were responsible for
the spread of COVID-19. While in ofce, former President Donald Trump and members of
his administration ofen referred to COVID-19 as “Wuhan Virus,” “Chinese Virus,” or “kung
fu.” 12, 13, 14 Mainstream news media ofen implicitly linked COVID-19 to China through
mentioning COVID-19 alongside China or juxtaposing images of China next to articles
about COVID-19.15, 16 Early studies have suggested that mainstream media coverage and
rhetoric used by public ofcials contributed to the stigmatization of Asian people during the
pandemic.17, 18

12
Li and Nicholson, “When ‘Model Minorities’ Become ‘Yellow Peril,’ p. 7.
13
Gover et al., “Anti-Asian Hate Crime,” pp. 653-654.
14
Tyler T. Reny and Matt A. Barreto, “Xenophobia in the Time of Pandemic: Othering, Anti-Asian Attitudes, and COVID-19,”
Politics, Groups, and Identitites, 2020.
15
Li and Nicholson, “When ‘Model Minorities’ Become ‘Yellow Peril,’ p. 7.
16
Reny and Barreto, “Xenophobia in the Time of Pandemic,” p. 3.
17
Hyunyi Cho, Wenbo Li, Julie Cannon, Rachel Lopez, and Chi (Chuck) Song, “Testing Tree Explanations for Stigmatization of
People of Asian Descent During COVID-19: Maladaptive Coping, Biased Media Use, or Racial Prejudice?,” Ethnicity & Health,
Volume 26(1), 2021.
Sean Darling-Hammond, Eli K. Michaels, Amani M. Allen, David H. Chase, Marilyn D. Tomas, Tu T. Nguyen, Mahasin M.
18

Mujahid, and Rucker C. Johnson, “Afer ‘Te China Virus’ Went Viral: Racially Charged Coronavirus Coverage and Trends in Bias
Against Asian Americans,” Health Education & Behavior, Volume 47(6).

4
Troughout California’s history, Asians have been subjected to structural racism and other
forms of discrimination based on stereotypes where Asians are portrayed as un-American and
spreaders of disease. During the California Gold Rush of the mid-1800s, Chinese residents were
blamed for high unemployment among White laborers, low wages, and “invading” the United
States.19 Te United States banned immigration and citizenship for Chinese laborers through the
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 as a result of persistent views initially formed during the height
of the Gold Rush.20 In January 1930, Monterey County enacted anti-Filipino resolutions that in
part attempted to suppress the work opportunities and wages of Filipinos. Later in that same
month White mobs attacked Filipinos in Watsonville, beating and killing a number of Filipino
residents.21 In 1876, San Francisco public health ofcials blamed residents of San Francisco’s
Chinatown for causing the smallpox epidemic.22 In 1900, ofcials in San Francisco regulated the
movement of people and food in and out of Chinatown under the assumption that Chinatown
residents were responsible for the bubonic plague.23 President Franklin D. Roosevelt reacted to
the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor by interning Japanese Americans in concentration camps.24
Two of these “relocation centers” were established to intern Japanese Americans in California.25
Anti-Asian racism and discrimination that pervade today relies on tropes and stereotypes
solidifed in earlier time periods. Much of the anti-Asian sentiment and racism encouraged
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has its foundation in anti-Asian stereotypes that hearken
back to past state-sanctioned discrimination linking Asian communities to disease and foreign
identity.

19
Angela R. Gover, Shannon B. Harper, and Lynn Langton, “Anti-Asian Hate Crime During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring
the Reproduction of Inequality,” American Journal of Criminal Justice, 45, 2020, p. 651.
20
Ibid.
Dominique Marangoni-Simonsen, “A Forgotten History: How the Asian American Workforce Cultivated Monterey County’s
21

Agricultural Industry, despite National Anti-Asian Rhetoric, Hastings Environmental Law Journal, Volume 27(1), 2021, p. 245.
Grace S. Kim and Tanvi N. Shah, “When Perceptions are Fragile but also enduring: An Asian American Refection on
22

COVID-19,” Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 60(5): 604-610, 2020.

23
Tessler et al., “Te Anxiety of Being Asian American,” p. 640.
24
Gover et al., “Anti-Asian Hate Crime During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” p. 652.
25
“Japanese-American Internment During World War II,” National Archives, available at: https://www.archives.gov/education/
lessons/japanese-relocation.

5
Hate Crimes vs. Hate Incidents
According to California PC section 422.55, a hate crime is a criminal act committed, in whole or
in part, because of a victim's actual or perceived disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity,
religion, sexual orientation, or association with someone with one or more of these actual or
perceived characteristics. A hate crime may be committed against a person, group, or property. PC
section 13023 requires California LEAs to report hate crimes that occur within their jurisdiction to
the DOJ.

A hate crime is a criminal offense motivated

by a victim's actual or perceived protected
characteristics. In contrast, a hate incident is
a noncriminal act motivated by prejudice.

A hate incident is an action or behavior motivated by hate but legally protected by the First
Amendment right to freedom of expression. Examples of hate incidents include:
• Name-calling
• Insults
• Distribution of materials with hate messages in public places
• Displaying hate material on your own property
• Posting hate material that does not result in property damage

While these acts are harmful, they do not rise to the level of a criminal ofense under California law.
However, if a hate incident begins to threaten a person or property, it may become a hate crime.

Figure 1: The California Attorney General website offers additional information and resources on hate crimes, including
shareable graphics like the one above. Resources are available in 14 different languages.

6
Underreporting
Victims of hate crimes ofen do not report their victimization to local LEAs, resulting in the
underreporting of hate crimes.26 Tis underreporting impacts the hate crime data received by the
DOJ, resulting in an incomplete picture of the hate crimes committed within the state each year. It
is important for victims of hate crimes to report their victimization to their local LEA (e.g., police
station or sherif ’s department).

Victims of hate crimes may not report the crime to a local LEA because there are barriers that
prevent hate crime victims from reporting the crime to their local LEA. For Asian immigrants,
limited English profciency and the inability to report a hate crime in their primary language may
prevent them for reporting their victimization.27, 28 A victim’s distrust of law enforcement and
a person’s concern about immigration status may also discourage victims from reporting their
criminal victimization to the police.29

Victims of hate crimes are strongly encouraged to contact their local LEA immediately. Victims
should also:
• Get medical attention, if needed.
• Write down the exact words that were said and other facts.
• Save all evidence.
• If it is safe to do so, wait until a law enforcement ofcer arrives so that they can take photos of
the evidence.
• Get the names and contact information of all other victims and witnesses.
• Try to get a description of the criminal or the vehicle.
• Call community organizations in your area for additional resources and assistance.

26
Frank S. Pezzella, Matthew D. Fetzer, and Tyler Keller, “Te Dark Figure of Hate Crime Underreporting,” American Behavioral
Scientist, 2019.
Kara Takasaki, “Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center: A Model of Collective Leadership and Community Advocacy,” Journal of
27

Asian American Studies, Volume 23, Number 3, 2020, p. 348.

28
Yan Zhang, Lening Zhang, and Francis Benton, “Hate crimes against Asian Americans,” American Journal of Criminal Justice,
January 2021.
29
Takasaki, “Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center,” p. 348.

7
A hate crime brochure and fact sheet detailing how to identify and report a hate crime are
available in 25 languages Attorney General’s website. Additional information and resources for
victims can also be found on the Attorney General’s website.

Figure 2: Hate crime brochures like the one above are available for download on the Attorney General’s website in 14 different languages.

8
Understanding the Data
Tis research brief report presents analysis of anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the
California DOJ by local LEAs since 2016, with specifc focus on comparisons between data
reported in 2019 and 2020. Te hate crime data set used for this analysis is available on the
OpenJustice Data Portal.

Readers should keep in mind the important ways the data collected by the DOJ may difer from
data collected and reported by other organizations and the mainstream media when reviewing
the fndings. First, the data reported to the DOJ only includes hate crimes, which are criminal
ofenses motivated by hate. Te data collected by the DOJ and analyzed in this report does not
include hate incidents, which are motivated by bias and other acts of discrimination. Second,
hate crime events are reported according to the type of bias motivation that was committed in the
hate crime event. In other words, if an ofender commits a hate crime against a Pacifc Islander
person, but the LEA determines that this incident was motivated by a bias towards people of
Asian descent based on the facts of the case, the crime will be reported as being motivated by
anti-Asian bias. Tird, for data reporting purposes, and in accordance to federal guidelines and
defnitions, Asian is defned as a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far
East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent. Fourth, data reviewed in this report refects
criminal ofenses motivated by hate that were reported to a local LEA and subsequently reported
to the DOJ by the responding LEA.

While beyond the scope of this research brief report, it is important to note that hate crime events
motivated by a racial bias increased by 68% from 523 in 2019 to 878 in 2020. See the 2020 Hate
Crimes in California publication for more information on the increase of hate crimes motivated
by a racial bias in 2020.

9
Anti-Asian Hate Crime Events Reported to the DOJ between 2016-2020
Increase in Anti-Asian Hate Crime Events
Overall, anti-Asian hate crime events have increased since 2016 (Figure 3). A total of 22 hate
crimes were reported in 2016. In 2017, a total of 37 hate crimes were reported, representing a
68% increase from the previous year. While the number of anti-Asian hate crimes reported in
2018 decreased by 8% (34 reported events) from the number of hate crimes reported in 2017, the
number of hate crimes reported in 2018 still represents a 55% increase from the number of hate
crimes reported in 2016. In 2019, hate crime events increased 26% (43 reported events) from
2018.

In 2020 there were a total of 89 hate crime events in California targeting Asians, representing a
107% increase in hate crimes targeting Asians from 2019 (see Figure 3). Tis percent increase
from the previous year marks the largest increase in anti-Asian hate crimes for a single year.
Figure 4: Anti-Asian hate crime events have increased, with the largest number of reports
occurring in 2020

Taking into account all anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the DOJ between 2016 and 2019,
the four-year average for anti-Asian hate crime events is 34. Comparing the events reported in
2020 to this four-year average, reports for 2020 represents a 162% increase in the average number
of events reported for the previous four years.

Figure 3: Anti-Asian hate crime events have increased, with the largest number of reports occurring in 2020

89
Hate Crime Events
Number of

43
37 34
22

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

10
Anti-Asian Hate Crime Events by Month and Year of Occurrence
In 2020, on average the number of anti-Asian crime event reports were also higher month-
to-month as compared to previous years (Table 1). In particular, the largest number of events
occurred in March and April 2020, at the beginning of the emergency declaration and stay-at-
home orders issued by Governor Newsom.30, 31 Studies have found that an increase in hate crimes
and incidents targeting Asian people coincide with harmful rhetoric from national public ofcials
connecting Asian people to COVID-19.32, 33

Table 1: Number of anti-Asian hate crime events reported by month and year the incident occurred

January 2 1 4 1 5
February 1 3 7 1 4
March 2 4 4 3 17
April 1 3 2 6 15
Month Occurrence

May 1 2 1 5 8
June 5 3 2 4 10
July 1 1 0 2 9
August 1 7 0 5 6
September 3 2 7 3 2
October 0 3 1 1 5
November 3 4 1 8 2
December 2 4 5 4 6

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Y

30
“Governor Newsom Declares State of Emergency to Help State Prepare for Broader Spread of COVID-19,” Ofce of Governor
Gavin Newsom, March 04, 2020, accessible at https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/03/04/governor-newsom-declares-state-of-emergency-
to-help-state-prepare-for-broader-spread-of-covid-19/.
“Governor Gavin Newsom Issues Stay at Home Order,” Ofce of Governor Gavin Newsom, March 19, 2020, accessible at https://
31

www.gov.ca.gov/2020/03/19/governor-gavin-newsom-issues-stay-at-home-order/.
32
Reny and Barreto, “Xenophobia in the Time of Pandemic,” pp. 3-4.
33
“Te Return of ‘Yellow Peril’: Anti-AAPI Rhetoric and Policies Leading up to the 2020 Election,” Stop AAPI Hate, October 21,
2020, accessible at https://stopaapihate.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Stop-AAPI-Hate-Report-2020-Candidates-and-Anti-
Asian-Rhetoric-201021.pdf.

11
Anti-Asian Hate Crime Events by Category of Criminal Ofense Committed
Hate crimes may fall into two categories:
1. Violent crimes, also referred to as crimes against people. Tis category includes the ofenses
aggravated assault, intimidation, murder, rape, robbery, and simple assault.
2. Property crimes, also referred to as crimes against property. Tis category includes the ofenses
arson; burglary; destruction of property, property damage, or vandalism; larceny-thef; and
motor vehicle thef.

Based on information reported to the DOJ, violent crimes were the most common type of hate
crime committed against Asian people in all years (Figure 4). Moreover, the share of violent
crimes has steadily increased since 2016.
Figure 4: Number of anti-Asian hate crime events by the category of criminal offense committed

2016 64% (14) 36% (8)

2017 68% (25) 32% (12)

2018 74% (25) 26% (9)

2019 74% (32) 26% (11)

2020 81% (72) 19% (17)

% of Total Number Events

% Violent Crimes % Property Crimes

In 2020, violent crimes accounted for 81% (72 events) of all crime events (89 events) targeting
Asians, the highest share of events reported within the last fve years.

Table 2: Total number of anti-Asian violent hate crime events and percent change from the previous year

Year Total Number of Anti-Asian % Change

Violent Hate Crime Events from Previous Year

2016 14 -
2017 25 79%
2018 25 0%
2019 32 28%
2020 72 125%

12
Increase in Anti-Asian Violent Hate Crime Events
Compared to 2019, violent hate crime events increased by 125% in 2020 (Table 2). Tis increase
represents a total of 40 more violent hate crime events than what was reported in 2019, and
represent the largest increase in violent hate crimes reported since 2016. Te second largest
increase in violent anti-Asian hate crimes in a single year occurred in 2017, where there was a
79% increase in reports when compared to data for the previous year.

For reporting purposes, aggravated assault, intimidation, murder, rape, robbery, and simple
assault are classifed as violent crimes. Across all fve years, simple assault and intimidation were
the most common types of crimes committed in anti-Asian hate crimes (Figure 5).34

Figure 5: Percentage of anti-Asian violent criminal offenses by type of offense committed during the hate crime event

2016 57% 29% 14%

2017 52% 28% 20%

2018 36% 32% 24% 8%

2019 53% 22% 22% 3%

2020 49% 32% 14% 6%

% of Total Number of Violent Hate Crime Events

Simple Assault Intimidation Aggravated Assault Robbery

34
Simple assault is defned as an assault and attempted assault where no weapon is used and which do not result in serious or
aggravated injury to the victim. Tis is diferent from an aggravated assault, which is defned as an unlawful attack by one person
upon another for the purpose of inficting severe or aggravated bodily injury. Tis type of assault is accompanied by the use of a
weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm.

13
Increase in Anti-Asian Property Hate Crime Events
Te number of property crimes motivated by anti-Asian bias have increased since 2018
(Figure 6). Te largest number of property crimes were reported in 2020, representing a 55%
increase when compared to data for 2019 (Table 3). Property damage was the most common
kind of property crime committed against Asians (Figure 6). 35

Figure 6: Percentage of anti-Asian property criminal offenses by type of offense committed during the hate crime event

2016 12% 88%

2017 9% 91%

2018 11% 89%

2019 8% 92%

2020 13% 88%

% of Total Number of Anti-Asian Property Crime Events

Arson Larceny Theft Burglary Destruction/Damage/Vandalism

Table 3: Total number of anti-Asian property hate crime events and percent change from the previous year

Year Total Number of Anti-Asian % Change

Property Hate Crime Events from Previous Year

2016 8 -
2017 12 50%
2018 9 -25%
2019 11 22%
2020 17 55%

35
Property damage includes the crimes of property destruction, vandalism, and damage.

14
Victim Characteristics
A hate crime may be committed against a person or property. Te term victim may refer to a
person, business or fnancial institution, government institution, religious organization, school,
or some other entity. For each hate crime event reported to the DOJ, the victim type associated
with the most serious criminal ofense is recorded. Te majority of anti-Asian hate crime events
reported to the DOJ targeted individuals (Table 4).

Table 4: Number of anti-Asian hate crime events by the type of victim reported for the event

Year Religious Government Business Person

Organization

2016 4.5% (1) 14% (3) 9% (2) 72% (16)

2017 - - 8% (3) 92% (34)
2018 - - 9% (3) 91% (31)
2019 - 2% (1) 14% (6) 84% (36)
2020 - 3% (3) 3% (3) 94% (83)

More than one person may be victimized in a single hate crime event. For data collection
purposes, the total number of individuals victimized, along with the age of each victim, is
recorded for every hate crime event reported to the DOJ.

In 2020, LEAs reported the highest number of persons victimized in anti-Asian hate crime
events to the DOJ (Table 5). Tere were a total of 101 persons victimized in the 89 anti-Asian
hate crime events reported in 2020. In 2019, a total of 50 persons were reported as victims for the
43 anti-Asian hate crime events reported to the DOJ. Te number of victimized persons reported
for 2020 represents a 102% increase from the total number reported in 2019.

Table 5: Total number of people victimized for anti-Asian hate crimes reported to the DOJ

Year Total Number of % Change

Persons Victimized from Previous Year

2016 25 -
2017 45 80%
2018 34 -24%
2019 50 47%
2020 101 102%

15
Te majority of persons victimized in anti-Asian hate crime events were adults (Figure 7). In
2020, 97% (98 adults) of all persons targeted were adults.

Hate crime events involving adult victims commonly occurred at a residence or on a roadway, a
fnding similar to data for previous years (Table 6).

Table 6: Number of adult victims reported to the DOJ by location and year of the hate crime event

Location of Reported Crime 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Total

Highway/Road/Alley/Street 5 10 7 21 28 71
Residence/Home/Driveway 11 7 5 9 26 58
Parking Lot/Garage 0 11 4 3 8 26
Restaurant 1 4 2 1 2 10
School-College/University 2 0 1 4 3 10
Air/Bus/Train Terminal 0 1 1 2 4 8
Park/Playground 0 1 0 1 6 8
Grocery/Supermarket 1 1 2 0 3 7
Other/Unknown 2 3 0 0 2 7
Service/Gas Station 1 1 1 1 2 6
Commercial/Office Building 0 1 0 0 4 5
Specialty Store (TV/Fur/etc.) 0 0 3 0 2 5
School-Elementary/Secondary 0 1 1 1 0 3
Bar/Night Club 0 1 0 2 0 3
Convenience Store 0 0 0 0 3 3
Shopping Mall 0 1 0 0 1 2
Drug Store/Doctor Office/Hospital 0 0 1 0 1 2
Hotel/Motel/etc. 0 0 2 0 0 2
Jail/Prison 0 0 0 2 0 2
Lake/Waterway/Beach 0 0 0 0 2 2
Community Center 0 0 1 0 0 1
Department/Discount Store 0 0 1 0 0 1
Field/Woods/Park 0 0 1 0 0 1
Government/Public Building 0 0 1 0 0 1
Bank/Savings and Loan 0 0 0 0 1 1
Total Adult Victims / Year 23 43 34 47 98 245

16
 Figure 7: Total number of adults and juveniles victimized in anti -Asian hate crime events reported to the DOJ by year of event

Total Number of Victims 97%

98

94%
96%
100% 47
43
92% 34
23 8% 4% 6% 3%
(2) (2) (3) (3)
0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Total Number of Adult Victims YearTotal Number of Juvenile Victims

Tere is no clear trend for where an anti-Asian hate crime event took place involving juvenile
victims (Table 7). In 2020, three juveniles (3% of all victims) were victimized in anti-Asian hate
crime events; two were attacked at a park or playground and the third was attacked at a school.
Tese locations are a divergence from data reported in 2019, where juvenile victims were attacked
at a residence or on a roadway.

Table 7: Number of juvenile victims reported to the DOJ by location and year of the hate crime event

Location of Reported Crime 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 T otal Victims
Residence/Home/Driveway 2 0 0 1 0 3
Highway/Road/Alley/Street 0 0 0 2 0 2
Park/Playground 0 0 0 0 2 2
School-Elementary/Secondary 0 1 0 0 1 2
Other/Unknown 0 1 0 0 0 1
Total Juvenile Victims/Year 2 2 0 3 3 10

Ofender Characteristics
Data on hate crimes includes information on the known suspects alleged to have committed the
criminal act. Known suspects include the suspects who have either been identifed or accused
of committing the hate crime as stated in the hate crime report to LEAs. Information on known
suspects may include identity characteristics, however, in many cases, this information is
unknown. It is also not unusual for the total number of suspects to be unknown. Moreover, there
could be more than one suspect who committed a hate crime. Terefore, the number of known
suspects may be greater than the total number of hate crime events. Troughout this research
brief report, the terms suspect and known suspect are used interchangeably, with the term suspect
assuming the same defnition as known suspect.

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Te reported number of suspects alleged to have committed anti-Asian hate crime events has
increased since 2016 (Table 8). In 2020, the number of suspects increased by 123% (87 suspects)
when compared to data reported in 2019 (39 suspects). Te majority of suspects involved in
anti-Asian hate crime events were adults over the age of 18.

Table 8: Total number of known suspects reported in anti- Asian hate crime events by year of event occurrence

Total Number of Total Number of Total % Change

Year Total
Adult Suspects Juvenile Suspects From Previous Year

2016 21 0 21 -
2017 25 1 26 24%
2018 27 1 28 8%
2019 37 2 39 39%
2020 81 6 87 123%

Rate of Hate Crime Victimizations

Anti-Asian hate crime events vary across the state, with some counties reporting hate crime
events and other counties reporting none. Given that the largest number of people were
victimized in 2020, this section focuses on the rate of victimization for data reported to the DOJ
in 2020 to take a closer look at the rate of victimization by county. Te total Asian residential
population in each county was used to generate a rate for every 10,000 Asian residents. Te
population of Asian residents was used to refect the population most vulnerable to being
victimized in an anti-Asian hate crime event. Rates were generated using population estimates
prepared by the California Department of Finance.

In 2020, a total of 101 persons were reported to have been victimized in the 89 hate crime events
reported to the DOJ. Tese 101 persons were victimized in 18 diferent counties in California
(Table 9). In 2020, the highest hate crime victimization rate was recorded for San Luis Obispo
County, where approximately two individuals out of about 9,000 Asian residents were attacked.

Te lowest hate crime rate per capita was found in Alameda County for 2020. Te hate crime
victimization rates per 10,000 Asian residents is 0.05. Te size of the Asian population in
Alameda County is estimated to be 441,271 in 2020. If one million Asian people lived in the
Alameda County in 2020, then fve individuals would have been victimized in a hate crime.

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 Table 9: Anti-Asian hate crime victimization rate per 10,000 Asian residents for 2020

Estimated Population of Asian Total Number Hate Crime Victimization Rate

County
Residents in County, 2020 of Victims Per 10,000 Asian Residents in 2020

Alameda 441,271 2 0.05

Contra Costa 175,546 4 0.23
Fresno 98,179 1 0.10
Los Angeles 1,368,661 32 0.23
Marin 15,345 1 0.65
Monterey 23,691 1 0.42
Orange 580,384 6 0.10
Riverside 148,270 2 0.13
Sacramento 224,826 5 0.22
San 136,203 3 0.22
Bernardino
San Diego 357,831 5 0.14
San 284,012 9 0.32
Francisco
San Joaquin 109,822 1 0.09
San Luis 8,891 2 2.25
Obispo*
San Mateo 195,838 7 0.36
Santa Clara 643,955 18 0.28
Santa Cruz 11,398 1 0.88
Solano 62,186 1 0.16

*The residential population size is estimated to be smaller than 10,000 for Asian people

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Conclusion
A review of hate crime data reported to the DOJ by California’s LEAs indicates that anti-Asian
hate crimes increased in 2020 when compared to information reported to the DOJ in previous
years. Tis increase further indicates that trends observed nationally are refected in hate crime
data reported to the DOJ.

Combatting hate crimes remains a priority for Attorney General Bonta and the DOJ. In order to
reafrm the DOJ’s commitment to combatting hate crimes, Attorney General Bonta formed a
new bureau, the Racial Justice Bureau, whose tasks will include working to address hate crimes.36
In addition to this newly formed bureau, the DOJ continues to provide a number of resources to
educate the public on hate crimes happening in California and resources to identify and report
hate crimes to local LEAs:
• Hate crimes brochures available in 25 languages, shareable infographics available in 14
languages, and additional information on hate crimes can be found on the Attorney General’s
website.
• Te annual Hate Crime in California report can be found on the OpenJustice publications
webpage.
• Data dashboards visualizing hate crime statistics are available on the OpenJustice website
under the Data Exploration tab.
• Te law enforcement bulletin on hate crimes and prosecutor guidance is available on the
Attorney General’s website.

Crime victims, including victims of hate crimes, are granted important rights under the
California Victims’ Bill of Rights (Marsy’s Law). Tese rights include receiving money to cover
losses as a result of the crime, the right to tell the court how the crime impacted your life,
receiving information about the criminal case, and getting orders from the court that may help
you. Marsy’s Cards outlining victim rights under California law are also available on the Attorney
General’s website in 23 languages.

Crime victims and their families may contact the DOJ’s Victims’ Services Unit at (877) 433-9069
or VictimServices@doj.ca.gov to receive additional information on the resources available.

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"Attorney General Bonta Launches New Racial Justice Bureau, Announces Virtual Convening Against Hate Crime with Big City
Mayors,” State of California Department of Justice, May 11, 2021, accessible at https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-
general-bonta-launches-new-racial-justice-bureau-announces-virtual.

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