IN reply to Samantha Townsend of the Women’s Banner Group, Shildon, who was saying that misogyny should be considered a hate crime (HAS, Nov 24).

I realise that I am walking on eggshells with this reply, but I don’t really see how you can prove the offence.

A lot of violence, as mentioned, against women is domestic either in the heat of the moment or persistent.

There are already offences to deal with violence but to prove misogyny, if there was such an offence, the perpetrator would have to be asked if the reason or one of the reasons was because his wife or female partner was a woman. Would there be an offence if it was two females?

I think there are too many hate crimes. There seems to be a hate crime for everything today.

Thomas Ball, Barnard Castle.