We have become well aware that judgement of others happens in other than just a courtroom, it occurs in schools, businesses, social media, and random or targeted incidents. Unfortunately, if someone has a different religion, they are judged and mocked. This is especially true in Lakewood, and also other parts of the state, as you can see in the report below.

Ocean County Prosecutor, Bradley Billhimer has stated,

“There’s such a stigma related around bias incidents and in New Jersey, statewide, we have had a 400-percent increase in the last six-years — that’s an alarming rate. We want people to report them so that we can investigate them and so that we can develop the data that we need,” Billhimer said. “Once somebody is in the system for a bias incident, then we know that there’s a certain predilection towards that behavior and we can track that. We want people to come forward, and it’s not always easy, I think people are reticent to come forward because they’re afraid of retaliation.”

Lakewood, in particular, has recently been experiencing a large uptick in bias incidents particularly where Orthodox Jews are the victims.

Lakewood comes in 6^th out of 246 townships in the state’s total reported incidents.

The NJSP obviously cannot account for unreported incidents which would make those numbers even higher.

According to the latest New Jersey State Police Bias Incident Report, statewide, there have been more incidents than ever with harassment, vandalism, intimidation, terroristic threats and assault comprising 90% of all bias incidents. Unfortunately these are increasing in Lakewood.

Data From the Latest New Jersey State Police Bias Incident Report:

(01/01/2022 – 05/31/2022)

Ocean County Bias Incident Reports by Police Department

NJ Division of Criminal Justice

Bias Crime Unit
609-984-6500

25 Market Street, PO Box 85

Trenton, NJ 08625

NJ REPORT BIAS CRIME Hotline:
Toll Free
1-800-277-BIAS (2427)
This is a tip line for individuals who are the targets of bias crimes

Report Online Using the New Jersey Bias Investigation Access System where you may file or respond to a complaint or register your organization.

NJ State Law:

Title 2C – THE NEW JERSEY CODE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Section 2C:16-1 – Bias intimidation.

Universal Citation: NJ Rev Stat § 2C:16-1 (2013)

2C:16-1 Bias intimidation.

2C:16-1. Bias Intimidation.

a. Bias Intimidation. A person is guilty of the crime of bias intimidation if he commits, attempts to commit, conspires with another to commit, or threatens the immediate commission of an offense specified in chapters 11 through 18 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes; N.J.S.2C:33-4; N.J.S.2C:39-3; N.J.S.2C:39-4 or N.J.S.2C:39-5,

(1)with a purpose to intimidate an individual or group of individuals because of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity; or

(2)knowing that the conduct constituting the offense would cause an individual or group of individuals to be intimidated because of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity; or

(3)under circumstances that caused any victim of the underlying offense to be intimidated and the victim, considering the manner in which the offense was committed, reasonably believed either that (a) the offense was committed with a purpose to intimidate the victim or any person or entity in whose welfare the victim is interested because of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity, or (b) the victim or the victim’s property was selected to be the target of the offense because of the victim’s race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity.

b. Permissive inference concerning selection of targeted person or property. Proof that the target of the underlying offense was selected by the defendant, or by another acting in concert with the defendant, because of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity shall give rise to a permissive inference by the trier of fact that the defendant acted with a purpose to intimidate an individual or group of individuals because of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity.

c. Grading. Bias intimidation is a crime of the fourth degree if the underlying offense referred to in subsection a. is a disorderly persons offense or petty disorderly persons offense. Otherwise, bias intimidation is a crime one degree higher than the most serious underlying crime referred to in subsection a., except that where the underlying crime is a crime of the first degree, bias intimidation is a first-degree crime and the defendant upon conviction thereof may, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:43-6, be sentenced to an ordinary term of imprisonment between 15 years and 30 years, with a presumptive term of 20 years.

d. Gender exemption in sexual offense prosecutions. It shall not be a violation of subsection a. if the underlying criminal offense is a violation of chapter 14 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes and the circumstance specified in paragraph (1), (2) or (3) of subsection a. of this section is based solely upon the gender of the victim.

e. Merger. Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:1-8 or any other provision of law, a conviction for bias intimidation shall not merge with a conviction of any of the underlying offenses referred to in subsection a. of this section, nor shall any conviction for such underlying offense merge with a conviction for bias intimidation. The court shall impose separate sentences upon a conviction for bias intimidation and a conviction of any underlying offense.

f. Additional Penalties. In addition to any fine imposed pursuant to N.J.S.2C:43-3 or any term of imprisonment imposed pursuant to N.J.S.2C:43-6, a court may order a person convicted of bias intimidation to one or more of the following:

(1) complete a class or program on sensitivity to diverse communities, or other similar training in the area of civil rights;

(2) complete a counseling program intended to reduce the tendency toward violent and antisocial behavior; and

(3) make payments or other compensation to a community-based program or local agency that provides services to victims of bias intimidation.

g. As used in this section “gender identity or expression” means having or being perceived as having a gender related identity or expression whether or not stereotypically associated with a person’s assigned sex at birth.

h. It shall not be a defense to a prosecution for a crime under this section that the defendant was mistaken as to the race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, or ethnicity of the victim.

L.2001, c.443, s.1; amended 2007, c.303, s.1.