Perceptions of hate crime perpetrators and victims as influenced by race, political orientation, and peer group

Three studies evaluated the influence of extralegal bias factors on mock jurors' perceptions of hate crimes. Race of victim (African American, Caucasian), race of perpetrator (African American, Caucasian), and political orientation (self-identified conservative, liberal) were manipulated in Experiment 1. Results indicated differential perceptions such that certainty of guilt and sentence ratings were greatest when the victim was African American and the perpetrator was Caucasian. Experiment 2 used a noncollege sample and found results parallel to Experiment 1. Experiment 3 examined the role of peer group and found Caucasians sentenced the defendant more severely when the victim was African American, but only when the defendant's peer group encouraged the attack. This research highlights the importance of examining extralegal factors within the context of hate crimes.