Month: September 2024

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department announced today that it has published a new guidance  addressing limits on when and how jurisdictions may remove voters from their voter lists. The guidance document reflects the department’s commitment to ensuring that every eligible voter can exercise their right to vote free of discrimination or voter intimidation.

“Ensuring that every eligible voter is able to vote and have that vote counted is a critical aspect of sustaining a robust democracy, and it is a top priority for the Justice Department,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “As we approach Election Day, it is important that states adhere to all aspects of federal law that safeguard the rights of eligible voters to remain on the active voter lists and to vote free from discrimination and intimidation.”

In its guidance, the department reminds states that efforts to ensure accurate and current voting rolls must be accomplished in compliance with federal law and in a nondiscriminatory manner. Specifically, the department explains important limits imposed by federal law on the rules and procedures states may adopt regarding their voter registration lists. For example, list maintenance efforts must be uniform and nondiscriminatory, and a program to systematically remove ineligible voters must not be done within 90 days of a federal election. There also are specific rules about how to remove registered voters because they have moved. Importantly, these federal protections apply whether the process is initiated by the state or is responsive to third-party submissions.

The department also released a fact sheet as a resource for jurisdictions and provides information on certain civil provisions of federal law that protect the right to vote.

• Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act: Federal law broadly prohibits intimidation, threats and coercion — or attempts to do so — throughout every stage of the voting process, including registering to vote, casting a ballot and counting votes.
• Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act: Federal law also prohibits discrimination in voting because of race, color or membership in a minority language group, defined to include American Indian, Asian American, Alaskan Native and Spanish heritage citizens.
• Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act: For voters with disabilities and those unable to read or write, federal law guarantees voting assistance in all aspects of the voting process by a person of the voter’s choice subject to only two exceptions barring assistance by the voter’s employer or union. And, under the Americans with Disabilities Act, state and local governments must ensure people with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote.
• Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act: The fact sheet explains that some jurisdictions, as determined by the Census Bureau, are required to provide all election information that is available in English in the covered minority language.

In April, the department announced an updated website, www.justice.gov/voting, a one-stop resource for information on voting and elections. This website includes guides on a range of topics to inform voters and state and local election officials. It includes, among other topics, information about Voting Protections for Language Minority Citizens under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, state-by-state rules regarding voting after a criminal conviction, the voting rights of members of the armed services and U.S. citizens living overseas, and information related to post-election audits, including the requirements under federal law that state and local election officials “retain and preserve” voting-related records.

More information about voting and elections is available on the Justice Department’s website at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section. Complaints about possible violations of federal voting rights laws can be submitted through the Civil Rights Division’s website at civilrights.justice.gov or by telephone at 1-800-253-3931.

The www.justice.gov/voting website also provides information on the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force, which leads the department’s efforts to address violence against election workers and to ensure that all election workers — whether elected, appointed or volunteer — are able to do their jobs free from threats and intimidation. 

You can report suspected criminal activity regarding voting to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or by filing an online complaint at tips.fbi.gov. You can also contact local law enforcement. If at any time you are in imminent danger, call 911. 

Source: United States Department of Justice

Good afternoon. I’m Matt Olsen, and I am the Assistant Attorney General for National Security.

For the National Security Division protecting Americans from terrorism and violent extremist threats is at the core of our mission. Every day, NSD’s Counterterrorism Section works with our partners to protect our citizens from terrorists and domestic violent extremists who seek to promote violence and violate the law. 

The National Security Division is here today, joining our partners in the Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sacramento, and the FBI — because these defendants stand charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism, in addition to the hate crimes charges already outlined by Assistant Attorney General Clarke.

As alleged, Humber and Allison, the leaders of Terrorgram, conspired to solicit and provide material support to carry out attacks on federal officials and critical government infrastructure. And they provided detailed instructions for carrying out those attacks.

The defendants were motivated by their ideology of white supremacy and accelerationism — an ideology centered on the belief that the white race is superior and that violence and terrorism are necessary to ignite a race war and accelerate the collapse of the government.

In soliciting attacks on politicians and government officials, the defendants disseminated a list of “high value targets” for assassination. “The List” included the targets’ names, photographs, and home addresses. When disseminating The List, Allison encouraged users to “Take Action Now” and “Do Your Part.”

And the defendants sought to bring about mass casualty attacks and attacks on critical infrastructure to achieve their goal of causing societal collapse. As alleged in the indictment, Terrorgram targets critical infrastructure as a way to destroy citizens’ basic sense of public safety in order to further accelerationist objectives.

In January of last year, Humber celebrated an attack on an energy substation, praising the Terrogram network for its “hard work” to encourage others to carry out such attacks by demonstrating “how easy it is not only to do, but to get away with.”

In addition to soliciting, supporting, and celebrating attacks on critical infrastructure, Humber and Allison disseminated instructional manuals and videos to equip Terrorgram users to carry out the most lethal and effective attacks, including an instructional video called “How to Make a Letter Bomb.” 

And they called on followers in the Terrorgram network to conduct attacks to “fumigate” cities, which to them, meant targeting and killing people based on their race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

These are not mere words. Terrorgram users have carried out, or planned, attacks after being guided by Terrorgram publications and instructional videos.

In October 2022, a 19-year-old in Bratislava, Slovakia, murdered two people and shot a third at an LGBT bar. The perpetrator wrote a manifesto, thanking Terrorgram for inspiring and guiding him. 

In July of this year, another individual in the United States who was active in Terrorgram group chats, was arrested for plotting an attack on an energy facility in New Jersey. Fortunately, the FBI was able to identify and disrupt that plot in time.

And just last month, an 18-year-old from Turkey livestreamed himself stabbing five people outside a mosque in that country. The attacker shared multiple Terrorgram publications with others before committing the attack and Humber later posted in a Terrorgram group chat that “he was 100% our guy.”

Today’s charges underscore the National Security Division’s commitment to stopping acts of terrorism, whether domestic or international. The charges also demonstrate the Justice Department’s resolve to bring every available tool to bear in countering these threats. 

As part of our important work, we have unfortunately encountered numerous instances involving domestic violent extremists motivated by the hateful ideology of white supremacy, including perpetrators of tragic lethal attacks.

I am grateful for the strength of the partnership between the National Security Division and the Civil Rights Division in ensuring we bring the most effective charges available — whether it be hate crimes, terrorism offenses, or both — to seek justice and hold perpetrators accountable.

I want to thank Assistant Attorney General Clarke of the Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Phillip Talbert, our Counterterrorism Section and the dedicated prosecutors in these offices. I would also like to thank the FBI’s Sacramento Field Office and Domestic Terrorism Operations Section for their hard work in disrupting this dangerous online network.

Source: United States Department of Justice

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

Good afternoon. My name is Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department. Joining me are Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Philip Talbert for the Eastern District of California and FBI Deputy Assistant Director for Counterterrorism Timothy Stone. Our offices have collaborated closely on this matter.

Today, a federal grand jury in California charged two leaders of a transnational terrorist group called the Terrorgram Collective on 15 criminal counts. The indictment accuses Matthew Allison, 37, of Boise, Idaho, and Dallas Humber, 34, of Elk Grove, California, of conspiracy, soliciting hate crimes, soliciting the murder of federal officials, transmitting interstate threatening communications, distributing bombmaking instructions and conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.

The indictment alleges that defendants solicited others to engage in hate crimes and terrorist attacks against Black, immigrant, LGBT and Jewish people, to attack government infrastructure and to target politicians and government officials, as well as leaders of private companies and non-governmental organizations. The defendants’ goal, the indictment charges, was to ignite a race war, “accelerate” the collapse of what they viewed as an irreparably corrupt government and bring about a white ethnostate. As the indictment lays out, defendants used the internet platform Telegram to post messages promoting their white supremacist “accelerationism.”

This indictment reflects the department’s response to the new technological face of white supremacist violence — as those seeking mass violence expand their online reach to encourage, solicit and facilitate terrorist activities. Technology evolves, and we keep up. These charges reveal that the department will come after violent white supremacists with every legitimate means at our disposal.

I will address the hate crime charges in the indictment. Assistant Attorney General Olsen will describe the counts related to national security. U.S. Attorney Talbert will discuss next steps and FBI Deputy Assistant Director Stone will discuss law enforcement efforts and collaboration.

The indictment accuses defendants of using Terrorgram to solicit others to commit bias-motivated attacks targeting victims because of their race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation or gender identity. The indictment charges that defendants identified targets for attack, urged followers to kill those targets, explained how to do so and celebrated the perpetrators of past terrorist attacks by developing a so-called “saint” culture. Defendant Humber explained that this “canonization of mass shooters” made aspiring attackers more willing to perpetrate violence to attain “sainthood” and inspire future attacks. According to the indictment, this strategy proved effective. A Terrorgram user who livestreamed himself stabbing five people outside a mosque in Turkey stated in his manifesto that he wanted to be recognized as a saint, cited Terrorgram publications and encouraged others to livestream their attacks to inspire future saints.

The defendants are charged with actually soliciting hate crimes, not abstract advocacy or wishful thinking. According to the indictment, the defendants expressly took credit for inspiring and guiding a 19-year-old Slovakian man who sent a violent manifesto to the defendants before shooting three people — killing two of them — at an LGBT Bar in Bratislava, and then killing himself while being pursued by the police.

Based on these and other actions, count one of the 15-count indictment charges that defendants conspired among themselves and with other people to solicit hate crimes, to dox federal employees and to convey threats in interstate or foreign commerce.

Count two alleges that defendants solicited others to cause bodily injury to people because of their race, specifically, because they were Black or were whites who associated with Black people and therefore were, according to defendants, “race traitors.”

Count three accuses defendants of soliciting others to commit bias-motivated attacks against Jewish people.

Count four alleges solicitation of such attacks against immigrants and count five solicitation of such attacks against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

In 1790, George Washington stated the aspiration that the new nation should “give[] to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” That remains a fundamental tenet of our democracy.

Hate crimes fueled by bigotry and white supremacy, and amplified by the weaponization of digital messaging platforms, are on the rise and have no place in our society. Everyone has the right to live without fear of violence based on who they are, where they are from, how they worship or who they love. The department will protect that right, and we will resolutely strive to bring to justice those who seek to threaten, undermine or extinguish it.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen will speak with you now.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department announced today that Dallas Humber, 34, of Elk Grove, California, and Matthew Allison, 37, of Boise, Idaho — leaders of the Terrorgram Collective, a transnational terrorist group — were charged with a 15-count indictment for soliciting hate crimes, soliciting the murder of federal officials, and conspiring to provide material support to terrorists. Humber and Allison were arrested on Friday by law enforcement officials.

“Today’s indictment charges the defendants with leading a transnational terrorist group dedicated to attacking America’s critical infrastructure, targeting a hit list of our country’s public officials, and carrying out deadly hate crimes — all in the name of violent white supremacist ideology,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today’s arrests are a warning that committing hate-fueled crimes in the darkest corners of the internet will not hide you, and soliciting terrorist attacks from behind a screen will not protect you. The United States Department of Justice will find you, and we will hold you accountable.”

“We allege that the leaders of Terrorgram charged today are a threat to public safety and the rule of law,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “Using the Telegram platform, they advanced their heinous white supremacist ideology, solicited hate crimes, and provided guidance and instructions for terrorist attacks on critical infrastructure and assassinations of government officials. Today’s action reaffirms that the Department of Justice will not tolerate this alleged abhorrent conduct. It has no place in America or anywhere else. We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to identify, apprehend, and hold accountable anyone who engages in such activity, no matter where they are located.”

“These defendants are alleged to be the leaders of Terrorgram Collective, a transnational terrorist group that our investigation found is responsible for soliciting hate crimes and the murder of government officials and providing support to terrorists,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Whether motivated by racial bias or antagonism toward government and societal norms, such behavior will not be tolerated. Terrorism is still the FBI’s number one priority, and working with our partners we are committed to investigating and holding accountable those who break the laws and assist violent actors in lethal plots.”

“Hate crimes fueled by bigotry and white supremacy, and amplified by the weaponization of digital messaging platforms, are on the rise and have no place in our society,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This indictment charges the leaders of a transnational terrorist group with several civil rights violations, including soliciting others to engage in hate crimes and terrorist attacks against Black, immigrant, LGBT, and Jewish people. Make no mistake, as hate groups turn to online platforms, the federal government is adapting and responding to protect vulnerable communities. The Justice Department is committed to protecting the civil rights of all Americans, and we will resolutely strive to bring to justice those who seek to threaten, undermine, or extinguish it.”

“As alleged, Humber and Allison, the leaders of Terrorgram, conspired to provide material support and solicited attacks on federal officials and critical government infrastructure, including federal buildings and energy facilities,” said Matthew G. Olsen of the National Security Division. “Today’s charges demonstrate the Justice Department’s resolve to bring every available tool to bear in countering threats of violent extremists and protecting Americans.”

“The defendants solicited murders and hate crimes based on the race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, and gender identity of others,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “They also doxed and solicited the murder of federal officials, conspired to provide material support to terrorists, and distributed information about explosives that they intended to be used in committing crimes of violence. My office will continue to work tirelessly with our partners in law enforcement and in the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute those who commit such violations of federal criminal law. I would like to thank the FBI and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and National Security Division for their partnership in support of the common mission to keep our people and public officials safe from hate-fueled crimes of violence.”

According to the indictment, which was unsealed today, Humber and Allison are the leaders of the Terrorgram Collective, a transnational terrorist group that operates on the digital messaging platform Telegram, where it promotes white supremacist accelerationism: an ideology centered on the belief that the white race is superior; that society is irreparably corrupt and cannot be saved by political action; and that violence and terrorism are necessary to ignite a race war and accelerate the collapse of the government and the rise of a white ethnostate. 

The indictment alleges that Humber and Allison, as leaders of the Terrorgram Collective, contributed to and disseminated several Terrorgram videos and publications that provide specific advice for carrying out crimes, celebrate white supremacist attacks, and provide a hit list of “high-value targets” for assassination. The hit list included U.S. federal, state, and local officials, as well as leaders of private companies and non-governmental organizations, many of whom were targeted because of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

Humber and Allison are alleged to have operated Terrorgram channels and group chats, where they solicited Terrorgram users to commit attacks in order to achieve Terrorgram’s goals of accelerationism and white supremacy and provided instructions and guidance to equip Terrorgram users to carry out those attacks. These attacks include but are not limited to:

• Bias-motivated attacks against those deemed by Terrorgram to be enemies of the white race;
• Terrorist attacks on government infrastructure, such as government buildings and energy facilities, which Terrorgram believes will ignite a race war and help accelerate the collapse of government and society; and
• Attacks on “high-value targets” — like politicians and government officials — whose murders Terrorgram believes would sow chaos and further accelerate the government’s downfall.

They also incited Terrorgram users to commit attacks in furtherance of white supremacist accelerationism, including the following individuals who were allegedly inspired or guided by Humber, Allison, and other members of the Terrorgram Collective to carry out attacks or were planning to do so when they were arrested by law enforcement:

• An individual who shot three people (killing two) outside of an LGBT bar in Slovakia;
• An individual who planned an attack on energy facilities in New Jersey; and
• An individual who stabbed five people near a mosque in Turkey.

The indictment charges Humber and Allison with a total of 15 counts, including one count of conspiracy, four counts of soliciting hate crimes, three counts of soliciting the murder of federal officials, three counts of doxing federal officials, one count of threatening communications, two counts of distributing bombmaking instructions, and one count of conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.

If convicted of all charges, Humber and Allison each face a maximum penalty of 220 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI Sacramento Field Office and FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, Boise Resident Agency, investigated the case, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho and a variety of foreign and domestic law enforcement agencies.

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, National Security Division, and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

View the indictment here.