Dear Jon,

Can you settle our bet? After seven too many margaritas this summer, my friends and I stumbled out of Las Mas and into the boystown nite air. While falling down the street, a car-load of Cub fans yelled "faggots" as they sped past us in their mini-van. An hour later, we saw the same mini-van parked in a lot behind a building. So my roommate dared me to "teach those breeders a lesson". Feeling brave and empowered by the tequila, I proceeded to pee on the front of the mini-van. My friends then quickly discovered an unlocked door, opened it, and found a lipstick on the console. My friend Robert wrote "breeders go home" on the windshield and put the lipstick in his pocket as we skipped off. Robert says that gays can't commit hate crimes because we are the very minority the law is there to protect. Daniel says that you have to hurt someone for there to be a hate crime and I say they are both wrong. Who wins?

Justin, lakeview

Dear Justin,

Well first of all, you committed a burglarya very sorry one, but a burglary. And the use of cosmetics in the commission of your crime was a great touch!

But thank you for your question because we should all be aware of what makes an ordinary crime a hate crime. And because many police officers and prosecutors don't fully understand the Hate Crime statute, it is up to us to inform themon the scene, at the station and in the courtroom.

A person commits a hate crime when the victim of a crime is chosen, in part, based upon the victim's actual or perceived membership in a specified group. I won't list them all, but the law lists about 10 different groups including race, religion, physical or mental disability, and sexual orientation. And for purposes of this statute, the law defines sexual orientation as heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality. So tell Robert that if he attacked a Cubs fan with a buff puff because he thought the guy was straight, then Robert has committed a hate crime.

Many believe that the predicate offense must be motivated solely by reason of the victim's membership in the given group. This is not true. If the victim was chosen a least "in part" by the membership, then the police and prosecutors should be treating the crime as a hate crime. And we should be telling them so.

Daniel is wrong when he says that you have to hurt someone to commit a hate crime. There are many other offenses that will constitute a hate crime when the motivation is based in part on hate. Along with the obvious battery and assault, the law includes theft, criminal trespass to vehicle, and criminal trespass to residence, criminal damage to property and telephone harassment. So if someone steals your lap top from Starbucks because he thinks you are gay, then that is a hate crime.

Armed with this knowledge, there are some things that we can all do to protect our rights when we think we've been the victim of a hate crime. First, the incident should be reported to the police immediately. Don't wait. Judges look at the "cry-out" period when considering the credibility of your claim.

911 calls are taped and saved by the police, so give a description of the offender or his car or license plate to the operator. Try to get any witnesses to remain at the scene until the police arrive. An independent witness can be invaluable. Insist that the responding officer speak to the witness. If the witness won't wait, get their names and phone numbers. Use your cell phone and call a friend's voice-mail and leave the offender's license plate number and physical description. This information should be recorded in more than one place and as soon as possible.

When the officer arrives, you must tell the officer the exact words of hate or actions implying hate the offender used. Don't wait for the officer to ask; they won't. And most importantly, insist that the words or actions of hate are included in the officer's written report. If it is not in the report, the prosecutor is much less likely to treat your case as a Hate Crime.