The Montgomery County government released a web portal this week to make it easier for community members to report hate bias incidents to county law enforcement.
The portal consists of a reporting form, which is available online in hundreds of languages. A completed form is sent directly to a staff member with the county police department’s Community Engagement Division for review to determine whether the department will investigate.
County Executive Marc Elrich (D) said during a media briefing Wednesday the online form was created after members of the county’s Anti-Hate Task Force recommended the county develop a more accessible system for reporting hate bias incidents. The task force was created in 2023 by then-County Council President Evan Glass (D-At-Large) and is made up of six cohorts representing the Muslim, Jewish, LGBTQ+, Black/African American, Latino/Hispanic and Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders communities.
“We encourage people to file. You can file anonymously. You do not have to attach your name or any information that connects back to you in this report,” said Earl Stoddard, the county’s assistant chief administrative officer. “But if you do, parts of this information will be protected from release so there’s no scrutiny that will be applied to you if you do choose to report.”
Victims and witnesses of hate bias incidents can fill out a report. The form is not for reporting emergencies or crimes; however, officials said incidents that are reported may be investigated as crimes. Types of incidents filers may choose to report could include hate-motivated graffiti, speech or threats.
The county has seen a rise in hate crimes and bias incidents over the past few years. According to an October 2023 report from the Maryland State Police, spikes in antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ+ incidents contributed to a nearly 20% overall increase in hate incidents in the state in 2022. In the county, drag story hours have faced violence and bomb threats, pride flags have been vandalized and torn down, and antisemitic graffiti has been found in various public spaces across the county.
In August, police investigated multiple instances of antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ+ graffiti at school buildings and houses of worship. Following the presidential election of Donald Trump in November, some Black county residents received racist threats via text messages.
The state unveiled its hate-bias incident reporting portal in June in response to a rise in hate crimes across the state.
More than 75% of all hate bias incidents reported in Maryland in 2022 came from Montgomery, Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Howard counties, according to a state report. Montgomery had the most incidents reported, at 159, with most found to be inconclusive. ZIP codes in Rockville and Silver Spring were among the four in the state with the highest number of hate bias incidents reported; the ZIP code with the highest number was in Baltimore County, the report said.
Ensuring a prompt response
Stoddard said the county is working with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and other local partners to ensure prompt responses to hate bias incidents.
“As an example, we’ve already partnered with our municipal partners, as well as others like MCPS, where graffiti might be found, to have a process whereby, once you fill out this form and notify us, we’re then notifying those partners for the cleanup activity immediately,” Stoddard said. “Our goal was to have a back-end, seamless process that allows us to expeditiously process and address the underlying issues.”
Not all incidents will be handled by police, according to county police Capt. Jordan Satinsky, who oversees the new portal Law enforcement will become involved if there is evidence of a crime or another reason for a police officer to get involved. Other types of incidents may be handled by other county departments or officials, depending on their nature.
“Once it comes in, [the report] will be vetted by a program specialist … to see if it’s a crime that needs to be handled by a patrol officer, because that could happen, and that would be shuttled off immediately to our emergency communications center if it was something in progress,” Satinsky said.
He added that the police department may keep in touch with individuals who file reports, and each report will come with a tracking number that the filer can follow.
MCPS introduced hate-bias response procedures in September that set strict parameters around when police are contacted.
The system’s three tiers – yellow, orange and red – are based on intent, impact on school community and criminal elements. Police are contacted only for level orange or red incidents —serious and intentionally discriminatory – according to MCPS documents.
Previously, schools informed police for all reported hate-bias incidents or allegations, according to district documents.
