SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – Neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan and the Proud Boys have descended onto this southwestern Ohio community to harass the mayor and Haitian immigrants, emboldened by disinformation spread by President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. JD Vance when they falsely accused them of being illegal immigrants and eating pets and wild geese, according to new court documents filed in Springfield.
The five-page supplemental affidavit filed Wednesday by Guerline Jozef, co-founder and executive director of the San Diego-based nonprofit, the Haitian Bridge Alliance, provides the court additional information in a case originally filed Sept. 24 against Trump and Vance.
Jozef is using an Ohio law that allows private citizens to file criminal charges. She wants the Clark County Municipal Court to issue arrest warrants for the Republican presidential ticket. Jozef alleges Trump and Vance broke several state laws, including some punishable as felonies. In addition to issuing arrest warrants, the law also allows the court to refer the matter to the local prosecutor for an investigation, said Jozef’s Cleveland-based attorney, Subodh Chandra.
A constitutional law professor who previously spoke with cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer said that courts have interpreted the First Amendment broadly for political candidates, even those who tell lies. He said there wasn’t enough evidence in the case to show the Republicans’ criminal liability.
Meantime, the case has been assigned to the court’s three judges en banc, which means they’ll examine and decide the issue together, according to Clark County Municipal Court documents. The judges haven’t yet scheduled any hearings on the case.
Springfield city and state wildlife officials have said they have no evidence of Haitians eating the animals. City residents who originally started and spread the rumors have since apologized and said they were wrong or mistaken, and never intended the community to get the national attention it has recently garnered.
The Haitian immigrants are legally in the U.S. under temporary protected status, a designation that allows them to work in the U.S. for a defined period of time. While here legally, job opportunities in the city have drawn 10,000 to 15,000 new residents – in a community of just under 60,000. This has created a strain on schools, health care and other services, which the state is trying to mitigate.
Thirty-three bomb threats have been called into the city since Trump and Vance aired the unproven rumors.
Jozef’s Wednesday court filing provides links to media coverage and social media pictures and posts.
“Since Trump’s September 10-debate lies hate groups have converged on Springfield, emboldened by Trump’s and Vance’s legitimizing of anti-Black sentiment, with the intent of terrorizing (Haitian) immigrants and their supporters,” the filing said.
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On Sept. 14, social media users posted flyers that had been distributed around town that contained the name of a Kentucky affiliate of the KKK and its hotline, calling for residents to “join us against forced immigration,” the filing said.
On Sept. 12, federal law enforcement warned local businessman Jamie McGregor, who owns McGregor Metals and employs Haitians as forklift drivers, machine operators and quality inspectors, and who has spoken positively about the employees to the media, that there were threats against him, some credible. Officers encouraged him to take precautions for his family’s safety, the filing states.
On Sept. 18, social media users posted images of flyers labelling McGregor a traitor. The flyers had a picture of McGregor’s face, the filing said.
Soon after, McGregor began getting voicemail messages, echoing the claims made by Trump and Vance, including one caller asking: “Why are you importing Third World savages who eat animals, and giving them jobs over United States’ citizens?” Jozef’s filing said.
Another voicemail indirectly threatened McGregor’s life: “The owner of McGregor Metal can take a bullet to the skull and that would be 100% justified,” the filing said.
On Sept. 28, Neo-Nazis gathered outside Mayor Rob Rue’s home, waiving swastika flags.
During Tuesday night’s vice president debate, Vance again said the Haitians were brought in illegally. He talked about Springfield and other American communities where “we brought in millions of illegal immigrants,” despite Gov. Mike DeWine and others criticizing him for this untruth, the filing said.
Laura Hancock covers state government and politics for The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com.
