Oh Jughead. What will they use those ears for in Gen Pop?
Posted on 07/21/2020 6:29:11 PM PDT by ransomnote
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Vienna man pleaded guilty today to charges related to his role in a conspiracy that conducted multiple swatting events targeting journalists, a Virginia university, a historic Virginia church, and a former cabinet official.
According to court documents, John William Kirby Kelley, 19, conspired with John Cameron Denton, a former leader of the Atomwaffen Division in Texas, and others to conduct “swatting” calls. Swatting is a harassment tactic that involves deceiving dispatchers into believing that a person or persons are in imminent danger of death or bodily harm and causing the dispatchers to send police and emergency services to an unwitting third party’s address.
Kelley managed the online chatroom where conspirators chose targets and orchestrated the swatting calls. Many of the conspirators held white supremacist views and targeted individuals because they were motivated by racial animus. Kelley communicated with these white supremacists and used racial epithets.
Kelley is a former student at Old Dominion University. In early November 2018, he asked conspirators to swat Old Dominion University, which conspirators did ultimately swat on Nov. 29 and Dec. 4, 2018. In response to the bomb threat on Nov. 29, 2018, university officials issued a shelter in place order and law enforcement were forced to search and clear every building on campus.
During the course of the conspiracy, members placed at least 134 swatting calls to jurisdictions across the country. In addition to the swatting calls against Old Dominion University, conspirators conducted two additional swatting calls in the Eastern District of Virginia, including a call to a former Cabinet official living in Northern Virginia in January 2019 and the Alfred Street Baptist Church in November 2018.
Kelley pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, interstate threats to injure. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when sentenced on November 24. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and James A. Dawson, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carina A. Cuellar is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:20-cr-154.
Hopefully this now begins a precendent for being able to criminalize people who swat innocent others with the law.
Including those who deliberately file false police reports to get innocent people in trouble.
The way to stop swatting is to get rid of swat teams.
I have a hard line about swatting. It should be treated the same as attempted capital murder.
I have a hard line about swatting. It should be treated the same as attempted capital murder.
Or killed.
Oh Jughead. What will they use those ears for in Gen Pop?
Apparently the complex's antiquated phone system made it difficult/impossible to accurately trace a call back to the maker.
Anyway, the cops showed up late night, pounded on our door and had forced themselves past us into the apartment before we had any idea of what was going on. When they saw there was no cause for the call and that we were bewildered by their being there, they quickly withdrew.
Not fun, in any event.
We moved out not long thereafter. To this day I suspect the swatters were some pukes who lived two floors beneath us.
You lost me at white supremacist.
Are blacks ever associated with militant or black power groups in a negative light?
Seems like it used to be a leftist fav not too long ago.
Looks like a monkey.
Winner +++
SWAT teams along with all paramilitary items: armored vehicles, automatic weapons and rifles of any sort, kevlar helmets, etc.
A state the size of Texas doesn't need more than three tactical teams. Smaller states can share them.
???????????????????
Wrong and simple minded.
Simple minded?
I have been aware of this issue since the 1980's and could easily take up a post 3 pages long listing examples of completely innocent people or people that have only committed trivial crimes that have been killed by swat. Listing examples of peoples constitutional rights being trampled by use of swat teams would literally take more space than this website can hold.
In a nutshell swat teams have been "wrong" since day one and continue to be a menace today. The advent of swat is the genesis of the anti-police sentiment that we are experiencing today. Even among reasonable people who actually support or want to support our police. Swat is the disease that took over our once trusted AND trusting peace officers who were seen and interacted as neighbors and members of our communities rather than soldiers in an occupying military force. How many lives does swat actually save? So few compared to the times they are unjustly used as to be almost statistically immeasurable. In other words only a fraction of a percent of the time when swat teams are used do they actually do any good at all over and above what can be done by normal police. swat teams are a problem not a solution. The fact that "swatting" is so easily done to anyone should tell you clearly that these teams are in fact a danger to our society and need to be totally eliminated or reduced to only a few in the entire country.
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