Roundtable Discussions Come Following Recommendations of Transition Committee and Recent Prosecution of Man Who Targeted Church Leaders, African Americans, and Muslims. 

Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan is announcing the launch of the Safe From Hate Roundtable Series, inviting leaders from religious, racial, and ethnic communities across Bucks County to meet with experts and law enforcement to discuss collaborative solutions for preventing and addressing hate crimes.

Earlier this year, the District Attorney’s Transition Committee released “Building a 21st Century DA’s Office: The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office 2026 Transition Report,” which recommended exactly this course of action.  “In his first year of office, the DA should visit houses of worship from every faith community in Bucks County, meet with organizations representing the County’s diverse ethnic and racial communities, and convene a roundtable, task force, and/or working group to ensure that lines of communication are open,” read the report, which was co-authored by retired attorney Tom Jennings and Brendan Flynn, the Office’s Chief of Staff.  The report further recommended that the DA’s Office “map out policies and strategies for both proactive investigations and reactive prosecutions” of hate crimes in Bucks County.

Since taking office, DA Khan has engaged with police departments, houses of worship and community organizations in every corner of Bucks County to hear questions, concerns and suggestions.  Over the next few months, the Office will bring these stakeholders together to engage in dialogue at roundtables in each of the County’s three geographic regions.

The Lower Bucks Roundtable will be held at the Peace Center in Langhorne on September 29 at 3 pm.  The Central Bucks Roundtable will take place at Delaware Valley University on October 19 at 3 pm.  The Upper Bucks Roundtable will take place in November on a date and at a location to be determined.  Each roundtable will feature a diverse group of participants and will be live-streamed for the public.

“The Peace Center and Delaware Valley University both have a rich legacies of promoting peace, dialogue, and understanding,” said Flynn.  “We are incredibly grateful and proud to partner with these institutions to begin this important work.”

The Safe from Hate Roundtable Series aims to open direct communication between the District Attorney’s Office and local community leaders to ensure that hate crimes are prevented when possible, properly reported, thoroughly investigated, and appropriately addressed by the District Attorney’s Office. 

The DA’s announcement comes on the heels of a recent arrest of a Bucks County man who was charged with a felony count of ethnic intimidation and related charges after he sent explicit death threats, anti-Muslim statements, and violent racial slurs to a leader of a local historically Black church. 

In addition to its authority to prosecute ethnic intimidation and other crimes, DA’s offices in Pennsylvania also have the authority to go to civil court to obtain equitable relief on behalf of victims of ethnic intimidation, a power that has rarely if ever been utilized. 

“We’re going to utilize every tool at our disposal to provide justice and safety for victims of hate crimes,” said DA Khan.  “At a time when people are increasingly feeling at risk because of who they are, our Office is committed to ensuring that each and every member of our community knows that their DA will fight to keep them safe.”