Letter to Honorable Merrick Garland, Attorney General of The U.S. Department of Justice - Duckworth to Doj and Fbi: Take Immediate Steps to Prevent & Improve Investigations of Hate Crimes Against Asian Americans

Letter

Dear Attorney General Garland:
I write to express my deep alarm over the rising rate of violent attacks and racist harassment
against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, including the recent mass
murder of eight individuals, which included six Asian American women in Atlanta, Georgia. The
spike in anti-AAPI hate is a dire -- and deadly -- national crisis. The U.S. Department of Justice
(DOJ) must bring to bear the full force of its resources and authorities to investigate and
prosecute these heinous crimes. Punishment must be swift, severe and certain to deter these
purveyors of hate from acting on their prejudices in the form of violent threats and violent acts
against Asian Americans.
As an Executive Department that was created to destroy the Ku Klux Klan, I am confident that
DOJ possesses the capacity and capability to combat a growing domestic security threat that
makes a mockery of our Nation's founding creed to establish justice and ensure domestic
tranquility. It is up to DOJ's leadership to galvanize and focus the Department's expertise to
prioritize combatting hate crimes, violent acts and violent threats against the AAPI community.
Accordingly, I request that DOJ:
* Establish a "strike force" to consolidate prosecutorial focus and resources to aggressively
build Federal criminal cases against perpetrators of AAPI hate crimes and other violent
acts -- while investigating potential coordination among suspects; and
* Strengthen DOJ guidance to every U.S. Attorney addressing how to effectively enforce
all appropriate Federal statutes related to anti-AAPI crimes and affirming the importance
of prosecuting such criminal violations to the fullest extent of the law to deter bad actors
and send a clear message that the United States Government will demonstrate zero
tolerance for perpetrators of hate crimes and other criminal acts targeting Asian
Americans.
The AAPI community's confidence in the law enforcement community was seriously damaged
by the Sheriff of Cherokee County Office's outrageous decision to not only employ -- but also
deploy as the Sheriff's national spokesperson -- a racist individual who exhibited more empathy
for a mass murderer than the victims of his heinous crime, and then was found to have proudly
touted a hateful and ignorant anti-Asian t-shirt on social media.
Letter to Attorney General Garland
March 18, 2021
Page 2 of 2
When a leading local law enforcement official, only hours after a horrific, cold-blooded mass
murder, remarks on the alleged suspect that, "Yesterday was a really bad day for him and this is
what he did" -- it dehumanizes the victims of an apparent violent hate crime and sends the
disgraceful and disgusting message that in the United States of America, there remains one set of
laws for white men, and another set of laws for non-white men. DOJ must act to combat this
dangerous and anti-American message.
In the past, the DOJ has launched "strike force" operations to bring together prosecutors and law
enforcement to charge individuals violating Federal laws. A DOJ "strike force" was most
recently convened to prosecute individuals who engaged in violent insurrection and seditious
conspiracy against the United States of America on January 6, 2021. Using this mechanism sends
a strong message that the United States Government is determined and resolute in prosecuting
criminals who threaten our Nation, our Constitution and its people to the fullest extent of the law.
As you noted at your confirmation hearing, "Hate crimes tear at the fabric of our community."
Moving forward, DOJ must fully investigate and prosecute cases of AAPI hate crimes and
related violent criminal acts. Perpetrators of disgusting hate against Asian Americans must learn
that the Federal Government will bring all resources to bear in hunting them down and
subjecting them to justice that is swift, severe and certain.
Sincerely,

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