Under Illinois law, hate crimes include criminal acts, such as homicide, assault, or criminal damage to property, in which the offender was motivated by a specified demographic characteristic of a victim, such as race, sexual orientation, or disability. The number of reported hate crimes statewide declined by 13 percent between 1997 and 1998. This decline was driven largely by a 31-percent decrease in reported hate crimes in Cook County. The number in other regions remained about the same over the period analyzed. The most common offenses reported in Illinois were simple assaults and intimidation. Together, these offenses accounted for almost 60 percent of reported hate crimes each year. Aggravated assaults, criminal damage and destruction of property, and vandalism accounted for 35 percent of hate crime offenses. The data show that crimes of aggravated assault, simple assault, intimidation, and "other" categories have increased since 1996 or stayed consistent with numbers reported in 1997. At least 75 percent of reported hate crimes in Illinois were racially or ethnically motivated. The victim's sexual orientation was the second most common motivator for hate crimes. Data limitations are discussed. 2 tables and 4 figures