New effort targets hate crimes

Spurred by a recent rash of hate crimes on Capitol Hill and other Seattle neighborhoods, King County prosecutors and community activists launched a campaign Friday urging potential victims to call 911 when facing harassment and to avoid confrontation.

"It's a lot to ask people not to engage," said Mike Hogan, a senior deputy prosecutor who handles the department's malicious-harassment cases, which are this state's versions of hate crimes. "But we're doing it so victims don't end up going to Harborview" Medical Center.

After a news conference announcing the campaign, Hogan and volunteers from the Gay City Health Project and the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce plastered posters inside businesses along the Pike and Pine street corridors.

The purple and yellow posters titled "Hate Crimes A!ert" urge people to stay alert to their surroundings, travel in groups and call 911 immediately if they encounter bullying or harassment.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said his office is also working with Seattle police to produce a training video that will help officers determine the elements of a hate crime and recognize the importance of recording verbatim the words used in a verbal assault.

Hogan said he prosecuted 14 malicious-harassment cases in the past year, all of which involved intoxicated individuals. In the most recent case, he said, a man who had harassed a gay person in Pioneer Square was sentenced last week to 14 months in prison.

Hogan said it is unclear whether incidents of malicious harassment are actually increasing or whether it's simply the awareness and willingness to report the hate crimes that are on the rise.

Satterberg said police will respond promptly to reports of harassment, and the initiative should be seen as a message that his office takes these crimes seriously.

By making the cases "high profile and showing a willingness to make examples of individuals," Satterberg said he hopes to give would-be offenders reason to pause before acting.

Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com