California man charged after bomb, shooting threat to Merriam-Webster over 'female,' 'girl,' 'trans woman' definitions
Define "abomination." A man in California was arrested for allegedly threatening to shoot and bomb the Merriam-Webster company over its dictionary definitions for "girl," "female," and "trans woman."
Jeremy David Hanson of Rossmoor was charged with one count of interstate communications of threats to commit violence, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Massachusetts, where Merriam-Webster is based.
According to the criminal complaint, Merriam-Webster received a series of "threatening messages and comments demonstrating bias against specific gender identities" between Oct. 2 and Oct. 8, 2021, via its website's "Contact Us" page and comments section for the dictionary entries.
"There is no such thing as 'gender identity,'" Hanson, 34, allegedly wrote in a comment for the definition of "female" via the handle @anonYmous.
"The imbecile who wrote this entry should be hunted down and shot."
For the "girl" entry, he allegedly commented: "The moron who created this fake definition should be hunted down and shot. I am sick and tired of these cultural Marxists denying science and destroying the English Language. Merriam-Webster headquarters should be shot and bombed. Boys aren't girls."
The threats prompted Merriam-Webster to close its offices in Springfield and New York City for five business days.
Authorities later traced the messages from @anonYmous to Hanson through an account linked to his family's home, court documents of the US Attorney's Office showed.
Hanson also allegedly threatened other institutions and individuals, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, Hasbro, Inc., IGN Entertainment, as well as the President of the University of North Texas, Loyola Marymount University professors, and a New York City rabbi.
If found guilty, Hanson could face up to five years in prison with three years of supervised release, on top of a fine of $250,000 (P13 million), according to the complaint.
He is set to appear in federal court in Massachusetts on April 29.
"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 Bonavolonta, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Boston Division. "Threats to life are most certainly not protected speech and they cause real fear in victims."