Throw the book at him.
A California man is facing federal charges for allegedly barraging Merriam-Webster with threatening comments and making a bomb threat, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts said Friday.
Jeremy David Hanson, 34, who allegedly took exception to the dictionary-makers definitions for “Girl,” “Woman,” and “Female” is accused of sending a number of disturbing messages that caused the company’s Springfield and New York City offices to spend five days shuttered, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
“You [sic] headquarters should be shot up and bombed. It is sickening that you have caved to the cultural Marxist, anti-science tranny [sic] agenda and altered the definition of ‘female’ as part of the Left’s efforts to corrupt and degrade the English language and deny reality,” Hanson allegedly wrote. “You evil Marxists should all be killed. It would be poetic justice to have someone storm your offices and shoot up the place, leaving none of you commies alive.”
In another message, Hanson allegedly said that he would “bomb your offices,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The threatening posts were made anonymously between Oct. 2 and 8 in the website’s comments section and through the “Contact Us” page. Feds said they were able to trace the comments back to Hanson. He now faces one count of interstate communication of threats to commit violence.
“Everyone has a right to express their opinion, but repeatedly threatening to kill people, as has been alleged, takes it to a new level,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, special agent in charge of the FBI Boston Division. “We are always going to pursue individuals who try to intimidate and isolate members of our community by inciting violent, hateful acts. Threats to life are most certainly not protected speech and they cause real fear in victims. Rest assured, the FBI will do everything we can to bring to justice anyone who commits these criminal acts.”
Hanson is scheduled to appear in court on April 29.