Hate-Motivated Violence and Threats

1. A threat of killing, damaging health or destroying property, when a person threatened has started to have a reasonable sensation of fear that the threat will be carried out, –

shall be punished by a fine or community service for a term of 120 to 180 hours, or by corrective labour for a term of up to one year or house arrest for a term of six months to two years, or by imprisonment for a term of up to one year, with or without restriction of the rights regarding weapons.

2. The same act committed:

a) by a group of persons;

b) repeatedly;

c) premeditatedly by a perpetrator against a pregnant woman, a person in a helpless condition, a person with disabilities or a minor, –

d) against a family member, –

shall be punished by a fine or community service for a term of 170 to 200 hours, or by corrective labour for a term of up to two years and/or imprisonment for a term of up to three years, with or without restriction of the rights regarding weapons.

The consolidated official source is listed in the source section at the end of this guide.

1. Persecution of persons because of their speech, opinion, conscience, confession, faith or creed, or political, social, professional, religious or scientific activities, –

shall be punished by a fine or house arrest for a term of six months to one year, or by imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

2. The same act:

a) committed with violence or threat of violence;

b) committed with the abuse of the official position;

c) which has resulted in considerable damage, –

shall be punished by a fine or house arrest for a term of one to two years, or by imprisonment for a term of up to three years, with or without deprivation of the right to hold an office or to carry out activities for a term of up to three years.

The consolidated official source is listed in the source section at the end of this guide.

1. Commission of crime on the basis of race, skin colour, language, sex, sexual orientation, or due to intolerance for equality of women with men, on the basis of age, religion, political or other views, disability, citizenship, national, ethnic or social affiliation, origin, property or birth status, place of residence or other signs of discrimination with the reason of intolerance shall be an aggravating factor for liability for all respective crimes.

2. Commission of crime by one family member against another family member, against a helpless person, a minor or in his/her presence, with the extreme cruelty, with the use of a weapon or under the threat of using a weapon, by abusing the official position shall be an aggravating factor for liability for all respective crimes.

2¹. Participation of an adult knowingly in the commission of a crime together with a minor, as an accomplice or a joint principal, or involvement of a minor knowingly by an adult into the commission of a crime shall be an aggravating factor for all the related crimes provided for by this Code.

3. When imposing a fixed term imprisonment for a crime committed with an aggravating factor under paragraph 1 or 2 of this article, the term of a sentence to be served shall exceed, at least by one year, the minimum term of sentence provided for the committed crime under the respective article or part of an article of this Code.

3¹. When imposing a fixed term imprisonment for a crime committed with an aggravating factor of the liability defined by paragraph 2¹ of this article, the term of a sentence to be served must exceed, by at least one year, the minimum term of sentence provided for the committed crime by the related article or part of the article of this Code, and if the minor is a person who has not attained the age of 14, the term of the said sentence must not be less than two thirds of the maximum term of sentence provided for the committed crime by the related article or part of the article of this Code and must exceed, by at least one year, the minimum term of sentence provided for by the same article or part of the same article.

4. If an article or part of an article of the Special Part of this Code refers to a factor provided for by paragraph 1, 2 or 21 of this article as to an element qualifying the crime, and the procedures provided for by paragraphs 3 and 3¹ of this article shall not be taken into consideration when imposing a sentence if there are grounds under Article 55 or 63(1) of this Code,.

The consolidated official source is listed in the source section at the end of this guide.