As far back as the United States Constitution's Thirteenth Amendment and the Homestead Laws, civil rights of United States inhabitants have been protected. Over the years, the definition of, and the protection offered under civil rights, have changed. The Thirteenth Amendment prohibited involuntary servitude and slavery except as a punishment for crime. The Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968, the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, the Fair Housing Provision of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, the Civil Rights of Institutionalizing Persons Act, and the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act of 1994 are but a part of federal legislation designed to prohibit discrimination based on various factors, to include race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, origin, or ethnicity. Each statute carries its own penalties, as well as the class it is designed to protect.

The FBI is charged with investigating allegations of civil rights violations which may constitute a federal crime. As such, the FBI ensures that the civil rights as defined in applicable federal law are protected for all inhabitants. The categories of civil rights violations addressed by the FBI are varied.

Deprivation of a constitution right by law enforcement officials during the course of their employment is characterized as Color of Law - Force or Violence matters. The vast majority of law enforcement officers in this country perform their very difficult jobs with respect for their community and in compliance with the law. Even so, there are incidents where this is not the case. Federal laws that address police misconduct include both civil and criminal statutes. In most instances, criminal cases involve the bringing of a case against a specific person or persons. In civil cases, action is brought against a governmental authority or law enforcement agency. The most common complaints received by the FBI nationally, as well as within the Hampton Roads, Virginia area, involve allegations of excessive use of force by law enforcement officials.

Racial and religious discrimination, more commonly classified as hate crimes, are defined as crimes motivated by a preformed negative bias against a person, property, or organization based solely upon race, religion, ethnicity, national orientation, sexual orientation, or disability. Examples of this type of criminal activity within the Hampton Roads area include church arsons, cross burnings, destructive or threatening graffiti, or property destruction. The impact of this type of crime is not isolated with the victims but affects the community. This type of violation receives the second highest number of complaints.

There are other types of civil rights violations that are addressed by the FBI but are not seen as frequently as those described above.

Involuntary servitude and slavery laws prohibit the bondage or peonage of persons for any reason except as punishment for a crime. Nationally there have been some highly visible cases of immigrants being forced or sold into servitude.

Laws enacted under the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968 are designed to ensure freedom from discrimination in housing in the sale, rental, or financing of housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. One of the most serious crimes experienced in Hampton Roads under this statute is cross burning. At times, the boundary between a hate crime and a crime involving the discrimination in housing laws is blurred. But no matter how defined, the crimes are detrimental to the whole community.

In 1994, the President signed into law the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Statute, which bars conduct, including violence, that would obstruct access to a health care facility. In addition, this law prohibits force, or threat of force, to include physical obstruction to places of religious worship. Damage or destruction of property at these sites is also prohibited.

Criminal penalties for violations of statutes addressing civil rights vary from a fine or imprisonment not to exceed six months up to ten years. In addition, civil remedies are available for those persons injured by such conduct.

The mission of the FBI in regard to civil rights matters is to enforce civil rights statutes and to ensure that the protected civil rights of all inhabitants are not abridged. To do this, the Norfolk Office of the FBI has joined forces with local, state, and other federal agencies to address those incidents where civil rights statutes are violated. These relationships have proven successful in addressing those crimes in which various agencies have an interest.

Once such a complaint is received, it is aggressively pursued. The information developed during the course of the investigation is forwarded to the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Criminal Section, for prosecutive action. It is the Department of Justice which determines what prosecutive or enforcement action, if any, will be pursued. In most cases, if a local or state agency pursues prosecutive action against the perpetrators of the crime, any federal action will be postponed pending the resolution in state and local courts. Once this action is complete, federal charges may be brought by the Department of Justice.

The Norfolk Office of the FBI aggressively pursues all credible violations of federal criminal civil rights laws. Persons who feel they have had their civil rights criminally violated should contact their local police department or FBI office immediately.