Harassment would probably be a civil action, but I'm sure he could get nailed on federal hate speech/crime statutes.
Dear mhking,
"Harassment would probably be a civil action, but I'm sure he could get nailed on federal hate speech/crime statutes."
Although there are hate crime statutes, from what I know, these merely amount to aggravating circumstances of an underlying crime. Thus, if one kills someone and the motive is racial hatred, then the "hate crime" attaches to the underlying crime of murder.
I'm unaware of any pure "hate speech" statutes. Remember, they let the Nazis march in Skokie. They just had to follow the rules set forth by the community. And I think that's jude24's point. The disruptor didn't "break in" to FR, but rather, gained access the way everyone else does - he registered.
He engaged in posting, which is a permitted activity. When the moderators of the site determined his postings violated the rules of the forum, he was required to leave the forum. So far, he has not re-entered in an unauthorized way, at least of which I'm aware.
It may be possible to get a restraining order forbidding him to re-register and post, and possibly a violation thereto might attach some criminal liability. But if the registration system doesn't keep him out, then I'm still trying to figure out exactly what would be the basis for criminal prosecution.
sitetest