PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Christopher Hood, the chief of a New England neo-Nazi group previously of Pepperell, Mass., is the topic of a civil rights grievance by the New Hampshire legal professional common.
In the grievance introduced Tuesday, New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella and Portsmouth Police Chief Mark Newport mentioned they had been initiating an enforcement motion in opposition to Hood, now of Newburyport, Mass., and Leo Anthony Cullinan, of Manchester N.H., in addition to the hate group NSC-131, for violating and conspiring to violate the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act.
Formella and Newport allege that on July 30, Hood led a gaggle of NSC-131 members, together with Cullinan, in hanging banners that learn “Keep New England White” from an overpass overlooking U.S. Route 1 in Portsmouth.
“This trespass violated the Civil Rights Act because it was motivated by race and interfered with the lawful activities of others. The slogan on the banners, ‘Keep New England White,’ was plainly motivated by race,” Formella’s grievance in opposition to Hood states. “The only reasonable interpretation is that the slogan and group’s intention was to discourage people of color from residing in or visiting and making them feel unwelcome and unsafe in the New England region, New Hampshire, and Portsmouth. Thus, the defendant, through this trespass, intended to interfere with the lawful activities of those traveling along Route 1 by discouraging them from exercising their right to travel freely through the Granite State.”
According to documentation supplied by Formella’s workplace, 4 Portsmouth Police officers responded to complaints concerning the signal on July 30 and located about 10 males “gathered on the overpass wearing hats, sunglasses, and face coverings emblazoned with ‘NSC-131 or ‘131.’” Only Hood had his face uncovered.
None of these sporting masks would determine themselves or communicate with the officers, however Hood stepped ahead to talk with them and supplied spoken and gestured directions to the group, making it clear he was their chief, the grievance states.
After two of the officers knowledgeable Hood the group couldn’t dangle banners from the overpass with no allow as a result of it violates a metropolis ordinance, Hood instructed the group members to take away the zip-tied banners from the fence, however some continued to carry the banners up by hand earlier than returning to their automobiles and leaving, in accordance with the grievance.
During the roughly 20-25 minute interplay with Hood, Cullinan reportedly drove as much as one of many officers in a pickup truck and angrily mentioned, “You’re not interfering with my friends and interfering with our rights.” Cullinan then transported Hood and different individuals from the scene, in accordance with the grievance.
For Hood’s conspiracy cost, Formella cited the planning and coordination required to execute the group’s actions.
“He coordinated with at least 10 other individuals to travel to the Portsmouth overpass in three vehicles, produce the banners, acquire equipment to attempt to conceal the identities of those who participated in displaying the banners, and hang the banners from the overpass,” the grievance states. “This incident was not mere coincidence or happenstance.”
According to the grievance, NSC-131 is an unincorporated affiliation with members in a number of New England states and that at the very least 10 members of the group participated in violating the Civil Rights Act. As an unincorporated affiliation, officers mentioned it may be held answerable for violating the Civil Rights Act.
NSC is brief for Nationalist Social Club, and 131 is the alphanumeric code for anti-communist motion. The hate group participated within the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, one thing Hood, its founder, has bragged about.
According to the Anti-Defamation League, “NSC members consider themselves soldiers fighting a war against a hostile, Jewish-controlled system that is deliberately plotting the extinction of the white race. Their goal is to form an underground network of white men who are willing to fight against their perceived enemies through localized direct actions.”
Officials mentioned there’s a most civil penalty of $5,000 for every violation. According to the complaints, Formella is searching for $10,000 in penalties for Hood and $5,000 for Cullinan. Additionally, violations of the Civil Rights Act can empower the court docket to restrain the defendants from committing future violations and different hate-motivated conduct for 3 years.
However, will probably be on the Civil Rights Unit to show fault at a ultimate listening to.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”