THe couple has been charged with misdemeanors from the state.
I don’t understand how or why the feds would be involved or how private individuals spewing hate would rise to the level of a civil rights violation, or that racial discrimination by private individuals warrants the FBI to be involved.
Clearly, I’m missing something. Either they have done something that wasn’t reported or I misunderstand the authority that the FBI has in what I would have thought was a state and local case, or that they apply federal civil rights violations to private individuals.
The only thing I can think of is that the burning cross is being considered an attempt " to inflict bodily injury, through the use of fire, firearms, explosive and incendiary devices, or other dangerous weapons. "
Federal laws are often more appropriate for civil rights violations than state laws, as may be the case here. A couple of key points from the article:
Butler and Hartnett were arrested on Nov. 30 and charged with harassment in the second degree, a misdemeanor. Hartnett was also charged with assault in the third degree, a misdemeanor. They both were released the following day.
South Carolina does not have a law allowing extra punishment for hate crimes.
The state law violations are misdemeanors, whereas federal laws impose much more significant penalties and are better crafted to address hate crimes such as these. See. e.g., 18 USC 249, which imposes up to 10 years incarceration for certain hate crimes, including conspiracy to commit hate crimes.
Also from the article:
Butler also allegedly shared on Facebook a picture of the victims’ mailbox, which has their address on it, and posted, “summoning the devil’s army and I don’t care if they and I both go down in the same boat,” according to the police report.
Posting threats like that online may also violate other federal laws concerning interstate communication of threats. See 18 USC 875.
Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, enacted 18 U.S.C.§ 245(b)(2), permits federal prosecution of anyone who “willfully injures, intimidates or interferes with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with … any person because of his race, color, religion or national origin”[1]
This dates back to the civil-rights era years when states were very intentionally failing to investigate and prosecute such crimes.
It could also be part of a broader conspiracy to commit a hate crime under subsection (a)(6) of the statute.
Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, or if the offense includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both.
Here’s part of the Fair Housing Act that the FBI uses to prosecute cross burnings and other forms of racial intimidation on property/dwellings:
THE FAIR HOUSING ACT AND EXTRALEGAL VIOLENCE
A. Sections 3631 and 3617 The Fair Housing Act, enacted as Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, was created to provide fair housing throughout the United States. As a broad remedy, it prohibits a variety of discriminatory housing practices, including extralegal violence. The chapter focused particularly on violence is the “Prevention of Intimidation” subchapter, which contains § 363 1.63 Modeled after 18 U.S.C. § 245, with language that tracks that of 245(b),64 § 3631 is one of several remedies targeted at crimes like those described in the previous section.65 Section 3631 provides imprisonment or fine in the following context: Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, by force or threat of force willfully injures, intimidates or interferes with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with(a) any person because of his race, color, religion, … or national origin and because he is or has been selling, purchasing, renting, financing, occupying, or contracting or negotiating for the sale, purchase, rental, financing or occupation of any dwelling. The maximum penalty for violation under § 3631 is life in prison.