Following the shooting that killed 11 people and injured six others at the Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha Synagogue in Pittsburgh, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a new government website to help people prevent and report hate crimes.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein stated that 88 percent of agencies that provide hate crimes figures to the FBI reported zero hate crimes in 2016—an indication that these occurrences are not being sufficiently reported.
“Simply because hate crimes are not reported does not mean they are not happening,” said Rosenstein. “Together, we can discover ways to improve the reporting of hate crimes so that we can more effectively target our resources to the places they are most needed.”
In addition to including statistics and research reports on hate crimes, the site has training materials and other content that can be used to try to halt such crimes from being executed.
The alleged perpetrator of the attack, Robert Bowers, appeared in court on Monday and was denied bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday morning.
“Our investigation of these hate crimes continues,” said U.S. Attorney Scott Brady after the court appearance by Bowers. “Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the victim’s families and with the community. And rest assured, we have a team of prosecutors working hard to ensure that justice is done.”
