Campaign to be Conducted in Cooperation with
Orange County Jewish Federation

Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced on Wednesday, June 27, 2018, that the District Attorney’s Office, in cooperation with the Orange County Jewish Federation, will be establishing an initiative designed to raise awareness about anti-Semitism and other diversity issues, and to increase efforts to investigate and prosecute bias crimes. The initiative is the culmination of cooperative efforts between the District Attorney’s Office and the Jewish Federation arising from the desecration two years ago of a Jewish cemetery in Warwick.

The campaign will include:

• A series of public-service educational materials about anti-Semitism. Those materials will be paid for by donations from the Federation and from District Attorney’s Office asset-forfeiture funds.
• Training for police officers regarding the effective investigation of bias crimes.
“We live in one of the most diverse nations on Earth,” said District Attorney Hoovler, “and in that environment illegal bias against others is intolerable. When people commit crimes against others due to their victims’ religion or race or gender or any other characteristic that the law protects, we must treat those crimes very seriously. Through this initiative, we intend to raise awareness about anti-Semitism and other diversity issues, and to provide our law enforcement officers with some tools to enable them to properly bring to justice those who commit bias crimes. Hopefully, those efforts can make Orange County a better and more tolerant place to live.”

District Attorney Hoovler expects the initiative to be in operation by the Fall of 2018.