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Hate crimes against Asian Americans in L.A. more than doubled last year, LAPD reports

Hundreds participated in a “Stop Asian Hate” rally in Koreatown in March 2021.(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

The Los Angeles Police Department documented 15 hate crimes against Asian Americans in 2020, more than double the previous year, according to a new study by the agency.

The findings were included in a report submitted to the Police Commission this week that analyzed hate crimes and hate incidents against the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in L.A. last year. Seven hate crimes were reported against Asian Americans in 2019 and nine the previous year.

The 15 hate crimes against Asian Americans last year accounted for 4.2% of 355 total hate crimes reported in 2020 and 8.1% of all hate crimes related to race, according to the report.

Of the hate crimes reported, nine were classified as battery, five as criminal threats or aggravated assault and one as a bomb threat made in an email to the Japanese American National Museum, according to the LAPD report.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.