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Jeremy David Hanson, 34, of Rossmoor, California, was sentenced to a year in prison after he admitted to sending threats to Springfield-based Merriam-Webster because he was upset over the dictionary's inclusion of gender-inclusive definitions, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.
From Oct. 2 through Oct. 8, 2021, Hanson repeatedly sent threatening messages through the Contact Us page promising to hurt employees and disparaging members of the LGBT community.
The company had to temporarily shut down its offices in Springfield and New York City on Oct. 8, 2021, after Hanson sent the following message:
"I am going to shoot up and bomb your offices for lying and creating fake definitions in order to pander to the tranny mafia. Boys aren’t girls, and girls aren’t boys. The only good Marxist is a dead Marxist. I will assassinate your top editor. You sickening, vile tranny freaks.”
He also targeted the President of the University of North Texas on March 3, 2022, with a threatening email that read:
“You ought to be shot in the head and have your offices set on fire for supporting child genital mutilation and transgenderism.” The body of the email read: “YOU LEFTIST FREAKS are the intolerant ones. Trannies are disgusting PERVERTS. Every single tranny freak should be gassed, along with their supporters. I will personally go to your university and start executing tyrannical leftist students and faculty who oppress conservatives. The only good Democrat is a dead Democrat.”
“Hate has no place in Massachusetts," US Attorney Rachael S. Rollins said in a news release. "... Mr. Hanson made numerous, anonymous hate-fueled threats of violence to intimidate and instill fear. Hateful and bigoted acts, even if only spoken like those committed by Mr. Hanson, terrorize communities and are destructive to our society."
Rollin urged people to report instances of hate toward the LGBT community by calling 1-83-END-H8-NOW (1-833-634-8669).
Hanson pleaded guilty to one count of interstate communication of threatening communications to commit violence in September 2022, the prosecutor said.
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