SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) The indictment of a far-right internet activist on charges of interfering with the 2016 U.S. election reflects a strategic shift by the Department of Justice and sets the stage for new cases against more prominent right-wing actors, according to people familiar with the matter.
Federal prosecutors debated for years whether and how to pursue criminal cases against Americans suspected of disseminating false voting instructions to manipulate the election, three people with knowledge of the discussions said.
While some officials wanted to bring a multitude of charges, others felt it would be too difficult to bring a voter-suppression case based on online messaging, the people said. The hurdles include free-speech rights, the difficulty in establishing intent and the challenge of showing that anyone failed to vote because a specific person misled them.
Gionet is currently facing misdemeanor assault, disorderly conduct, and trespassing charges in the court after he pepper-sprayed a bouncer in December. The case earned renewed attention this month after he participated in the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, joining the mob who invaded Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi s office. Both incidents were well-documented on video, which is unsurprising because Gionet has sought to earn a living by sharing interactive live video of his exploits, known as livestreams.
After being banned from most social media platforms, Gionet still attracts a fan base drawn by his promotion of alt-right ideology and his confrontational content. He marched with white supremacists at Charlottesville and hung out with neo-Nazi blogger Andrew Anglin. The Scottsdale bouncer was only the latest person he s maced.
Bruce Kulick has made the best of the COVID-19 pandemic by writing new music.
As the former Kiss guitarist told Metal Rules, he s been collaborating with his Kiss Kruise bandmates, whom he calls the MOBB an acronym for Members of Bruce s Band over video chat. One of the things that Todd [Kerns], Zack Thorne, and Brent Fitz and I were talking about months ago couldn’t happen, he said. But we wanted to start off with one song . and offer that and then see where the virus was heading, what was happening with the pandemic, to see if we could record some of these originals that we’ve been kicking around?