Religious hate crimes are on the rise in Los Angeles County, despite a slight decrease in the overall number of reported hate crimes, according to Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman.
"Religious-based hate crimes have actually spiked in the last two years," Hochman stated at a press conference Thursday at the Hall of Justice. He added that his office is committed to prosecuting these crimes with the "full panoply of laws that we have."
Several high-profile incidents have highlighted this trend, including the vandalism of a mural at the Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center with swastikas and antisemitic graffiti, and an alleged incident where an influencer's Buddha statue was smashed. Another case involves a raisin heir accused of directing slurs at a Jewish neighbor.
While Hochman did not provide specific figures for religiously motivated hate crimes, he noted that the overall number of reported hate crimes in Los Angeles County has seen a slight decrease this year. However, his office is pursuing more prosecutions than in previous years. In 2024, Hochman's office filed seven hate crime cases, followed by 39 in 2025. As of the current date in 2026, 35 such cases have been filed.
Data from the Los Angeles Police Department shows a 4% decrease in reported hate crimes in the city of Los Angeles compared to the same period last year. The total number of reported hate crimes in the city has fallen from a peak of 838 in 2023. As of June 20, 2026, the LAPD had recorded 460 hate crimes in the city, including 65 assaults.
A report released in December by the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations indicated 1,355 reported hate crimes in the county in 2024, the second-highest total on record. The year prior, 2023, marked the highest total with 1,367 hate crimes. These reports identified Black individuals as the most frequent targets of hate crimes, followed by LGBTQ+ individuals and then Jewish people.
At the state level, a report from the California Department of Justice found a 3.4% decrease in reported hate crime events statewide in 2025, totaling 1,955 incidents compared to 2,023 in 2024. However, hate crime events involving racial or ethnic bias increased by 6.2% statewide, from 1,011 in 2024 to 1,074 in 2025.
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell described hate crimes as deliberate attacks fueled by bias and hate, impacting the core values of the city. He urged victims to come forward, assuring them of the department's support, and acknowledged that many crimes go unreported due to fear of retaliation or mistrust in the system. "To every victim, please know that LAPD stands with you," McDonnell said.