WASHINGTON – For the first time, crimes directed against individuals on the basis of sexual orientation are the second most frequent hate crime committed after crimes based on race, according to the 2011 Hate Crimes statistics released today by the FBI as part of the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program.

Surpassing crimes committed on the basis on religion, the number of reported hate crimes committed against gay men and lesbians increased from 1,277 in 2010 to 1,293 in 2011.

KEY WEST, Fla. -- Police in this island resort city are labeling the beating of two men on November 10 an anti-gay hate crime and designated the investigation the department's top priority.

"The whole Police Department is focused on this," Mayor Craig Cates told reporters.

MADISON, Wis. -- A volunteer for a GOP candidate for U.S. Congress who claimed he was attacked because he is gay and Republican, has recanted his story and could now face criminal charges that include obstructing police and filing a false police report.

FORT WORTH, Texas — A grand jury on Monday indicted four teens who stand accused of writing anti-gay slurs and other vulgar messages on vehicles and homes in an Arlington, Texas neighborhood earlier this year.

Tarrant County grand jurors returned the indictments of felonious graffiti causing $1,500 to $20,000 in damages against John Austin Cartwright, 17, Seth Stephen Hatcher, 18, and Morgen Rae Aubuchon, 18, all of Arlington. Daniel Damian Sibley, 18, of Fort Worth, was also indicted.