In Re Joshua H.
People v. Joshua H.
Opinion
Opinion
Cottle, J.
I
Introduction
In the published portion of this opinion, we are asked to determine whether California’s “hate crime” statute violates the First Amendment. Similar statutes in Wisconsin and Ohio were declared unconstitutional by their respective supreme courts. As we shall explain, we disagree with those decisions. Hate crime statutes do not run afoul of the First Amendment because they do not proscribe expression. Rather, they proscribe an especially egregious type of conduct—that of selecting crime victims on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, or sexual orientation.
In the unpublished portion of this opinion, we address various evidentiary matters.
II
Facts
The H. family—mother, father, two young daughters and 17-year-old Joshua, lived on Guadalupe Street in San Jose. William Kiley, a gay man, lived across the street; he also owned a rental unit next door to the H.’s. In 1988, Kiley’s tenant’s dog bit Mrs. H. She sued, and as a result, Kiley had to pay damages and his tenant had to have two dogs killed. Animosity between the neighbors was ongoing from that date.