Making a death threat against an elected official is a crime and Trump supporter Brendan Hunt was convicted of same Wednesday and could be sentenced to up to ten years in prison. He made menacing social posts against a number of Democrats, including Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but it was his opus KILL YOUR SENATORS: Slaughter Them All, posted to right-wing cesspool Bitchute that crossed the line into criminality. Washington Post:
Prosecutors said at the trial that Hunt’s remarks were specific. He offered detailed descriptions of how he wanted to end the lives of the people he claimed were complicit in “stealing” the election from former president Donald Trump. To support the case, the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn offered evidence that appeared to illustrate Hunt’s deeply rooted racist, anti-Semitic and xenophobic beliefs.
Hunt took the witness stand in his defense Tuesday, telling the jury he was not to be taken seriously when he talked about gunning down elected officials. In his testimony, he said his comments were in line with “this sort of rhetoric going on at the time” on the Internet.
Hunt also said he was heavily using marijuana and alcohol while struggling with depression and boredom during the coronavirus pandemic. He told the jury that the video he posted online after the Capitol riot was filmed while he was under the influence.
U.S. District Court Judge Pamela Chen had instructed jurors that while “intoxication in itself is not a legal defense to a criminal charge,” evidence of inhibition by drugs or alcohol can be considered to determine “whether he had intent.”
This is an interesting case because it delineates the line between violent rhetoric and an actionable criminal threat. The video is no longer available to view on BitChute. This could be a constructive first step towards cleaning up the rancid rhetoric that passes for debate or constitutionally protected free speech.
One down…..73 million to go.
One down……73 million to go.
He posted some fairly explicit statements, that would get his account closed on other platforms.
Excuses . . .
That whole “I was drunk/high when I posted that” isn’t much of a defense. Just let him try that defense after he’s been pulled over while driving. Funny how the law will throw your ass in jail for “driving under the influence” but “posting under the influence” is supposed to let you off the hook. (Maybe he should take note of how well that went for Roseanne’s career. Granted, she’s not in jail but, then again, she only posted offensive comments about a person–she didn’t advocate killing the person she was ranting about.)
Sigh…my brain hurts over how brain-dead these people are.
His biggest crime is that he had the courage that the other 73 million lemmings who still support, and will vote for the great liar who landed this poor deluded fellow’s butt in jail is his crime. Herein lies the irony in Rowan and Martins fickle finger of fate. Dearest Carol M how is that for aging myself? I know this. Had the insurrection of Jan 6 been successful, Had the mob got their hands on Mike Pense and hanged him? Had they killed a senator or congressman, any senator or congressman, GOP or Dem it wouldn’t matter. Trump would have called it a National emergency and imposed martial law. We all know that was the wish if not the plan. We would be under a dictator right now and this unlucky William Wallace wanabe could have been our new Ambassador to North Korea. Oh that fickle finger?