During the House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee listening to, which Leach chairs, a person who had signed as much as testify on regulation the frame used to be bearing in mind introduced he’d be serving the chairman with a lawsuit.
“I’m actually here as Case Littlejohn with the National Process to service Jeff Leach,” the person mentioned when referred to as to testify. “I have a citation here for you in Parker County. You have 20 days from today to contact Parker County Clerk’s Office.”
Leach then puzzled if the person used to be registered at the invoice and requested him to sit down back off.
Following that, committee member Rep. Cody Vasut (R-Angleton) mentioned, “When you register to testify for a committee of the House you swear under oath.”
“So, when you do that under false pretenses, that’s a crime.”
That possible crime is perjury, a category A misdemeanor that carries with it as much as three hundred and sixty five days in prison and as much as a $4,000 superb.
The Texas Department of Public Safety didn’t go back a request for touch upon whether or not the person were arrested.
In a observation, Leach mentioned, “This morning, while presiding over a public hearing of the Texas House Judiciary Committee, I was served with a lawsuit filed against me in Parker County.”
“Needless to say, the claims are entirely without merit and I intend on fighting back — and doing so vigorously. As Chairman of the Texas House Judiciary Committee — I know first-hand that the Texas Justice system works to ensure justice and to safeguard our Constitutional liberties and freedoms. And I am confident that this case will be no different. This will be my only statement on this matter and any future inquiries will be directed to my counsel.”
The lawsuit used to be filed by way of Parker County resident Morgan McComb, a pro-TEXIT activist who mentioned in the petition that she’s a constituent of Leach. Leach’s House District 67 falls simplest inside Collin County.
McComb alleged Leach “defamed” her by way of “[likening] her support for…the ‘Texas Independence Referendum Act’” to “seditious treason.” Leach has been a number of the maximum lively critics of the speculation in Texas politics.
That proposed invoice — authored by way of Rep. Bryan Slaton (R-Royse City) — would begin a statewide referendum on leaving the Union. It used to be filed in early March however has no longer moved in any respect, as took place all the way through the closing consultation.
After Slaton filed the invoice, Leach tweeted, “This same State Representative — who here is violating his very oath of office — will proudly pledge allegiance to the American flag every day when we commence [the Texas legislative] session.”
“This ridiculous bill is the very definition of hypocritical [and] seditious treason [and] it is already dead.”
McComb asked in reaction to Leach’s remark, “Are you accusing me of treasonous sedition? A person who is tired of living under the boot of the federal [government]. Texans who love this state?”
Leach replied, “If you believe that Texas should secede from the United States of America — then yes. Unequivocally yes.”
On March 6, the similar day the invoice used to be filed, McComb looked as if it would foreshadow the swimsuit when she tweeted, “[Rep. Leach] You are writing checks with your mouth that you can’t cash.”
The lawsuit cites a lately made up our minds case in Lilith Fund for Reproductive Equity v. Mark Lee Dickson and Right to Life of East Texas, inside which the plaintiff, an abortion supplier, sued Dickson, a pro-life activist, for defamation over his feedback connecting them with “literal, criminal murder.”
The Texas Supreme Court dominated in Dickson’s prefer, ruling that the bar for defamation used to be no longer met and that the appeals courtroom used to be proper in ruling the feedback had been opinion.
McComb’s submitting then states, “Leach’s statements can be distinguished from the statements at issue in the Dickson case because a reasonably intelligent member of the public is not equipped with the same general understanding and awareness that supporting Texas independence is not sedition or treason as compared to the general understanding that abortion is not legally defined to be murder.”
The plaintiff provides that “one obstacle to the movement for Texas independence is that many people mistakenly believe that it literally is sedition or treason to advocate for Texas independence.”
Treason is outlined in Chapter 115 of the U.S. code as “Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”
“Seditious conspiracy” is outlined as, “If two or more persons in any State or Territory, or in any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, or by force to seize, take, or possess any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof, they shall each be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.”
The swimsuit states that “there is no law of the United States or other applicable law that makes it a crime of sedition or treason to ‘believe that Texas should secede from the United States.’”
McComb’s legal professional Paul Davis advised The Texan, “Rep. Leach has made it clear in his statements on Twitter that he values unconditional loyalty to an oppressive federal government over Texans’ rights to freedom and self-government as guaranteed by the Texas Constitution.”
“Rather than engage in discussion with those who disagree, Rep. Leach attempts to shut down public debate by falsely accusing supporters of the TEXIT Bill as being guilty of sedition and treason.”
Texas Nationalist Movement (TNM) President Daniel Miller mentioned that the group is offering McComb with monetary beef up for the litigation. TNM is the most important group advocating Texas depart the Union.
“With his words, Jeff Leach has accused the over 60% of Texans who support TEXIT of being guilty of the crime of treason”, mentioned Miller. “We will no longer tolerate accusations of criminality as a means to stifle debate.”
Earlier this month, Leach introduced a distinct grievance of TEXIT in a satirical April Fools Day tweet, pronouncing, “On this April 1st — I am proud to announce my support for #TEXIT! The best way to make America great again is to give up on her! The best way to revive the promise of America is to retreat from her! The best way to save America is to secede! Come on y’all.”
Another high-profile defamation swimsuit continues to be lingering in courtroom, by which Energy Transfer Partners CEO Kelcy Warren sued then-Democratic candidate for governor Beto O’Rourke over feedback the candidate made about allegations of bribery in connection with the Legislature’s handed energy grid reforms.
Texas has an anti-Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) law, a provision meant to offer protection to folks exercising their freedom of speech from complaints geared toward silencing that speech.
Any defamation swimsuit will have to transparent that prime bar — particularly that in his feedback, Leach used to be no longer simply expressing an opinion however making an allegation of criminality.
McComb asks the courtroom for an award of “$250,000 or less” in financial aid.
The thought of Texas independence is fraught with heated war of words however has exceptional endurance in the state’s political discourse — although its probabilities of going down are narrow, at perfect.
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