Hewitt, Louise ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1119-9137 (2026) Mind the (disability hate crime) gap: finding parity beyond the Law. In: Jasinski, Dan and McGuirk, Noel, (eds.) Citizens, the State and Justice: A Multidisciplinary Perspective. Taylor and Francis Group - Routledge, London. ISBN 978-1003399438 (doi:10.4324/9781003399438-15)

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Abstract

There is no aggravated offence of disability hate crime. The current legislation fails to place the disability characteristic on an equal footing with the characteristics of race and religion (for which there are aggravated offences). The effect of this is evident not only in law, which does not adequately punish the perpetrators of disability hate crime, but also in the actions of the police who find it difficult to recognise and record disability hate crime. Recommendations have been made by the Law Commission, most recently in 2021 and also in 2014 to extend the aggravated offences that currently exist for race and religion to all other existing characteristics including disability. Nothing has yet been changed. This chapter identifies and examines the two types of police response to disability hate crime, namely the vulnerability response and the access to justice response. Drawing on the author’s previous research it examines the practical effect of both responses on victims of disability hate crime and makes suggestions as to how the police can make changes that help to find parity beyond the law.

Item Type:	Book Section
Uncontrolled Keywords:	disability hate crime
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) K Law > K Law (General) K Law > KD England and Wales
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences > School of Law and Criminology
Last Modified:	06 Mar 2026 15:55
URI:	https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/52607

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