In a recent development, Adam Michael Nettina, a former writer for a conservative political advocacy group, has pleaded guilty to making threats against the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a prominent LGBTQ+ advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. Nettina, 34, hailing from West Friendship, Maryland, entered his guilty plea in a U.S. District Court in Baltimore, acknowledging a federal crime that involved threatening the LGBTQ+ group via telephone.
Court documents revealed that Nettina left a menacing voicemail on March 28, directed at the HRC, during which he invoked a recent mass shooting incident at a school in Nashville, Tennessee. Although the shooter was inaccurately identified as “a transgender woman” in the press release, this incident prompted Nettina to issue threats that included phrases like “We’ll cut your throats. We’ll put a bullet in your head.”
The incident highlighted the exploitation of such tragedies by certain conservative commentators and Republican politicians to incite further hostility towards the transgender community. Nettina’s threats were explicitly rooted in bias, targeting the LGBTQ+ community’s gender identity and sexual orientation. Notably, he also admitted to sending threatening messages in 2022 to a Virginia state delegate advocating for trans children’s protection and a Maryland state delegate supporting the trans community.
As a result of his actions, Nettina faces a potential prison term of up to five years for interstate communications with a threat to cause harm. The significance of this case transcends individual actions; it underscores the imperative to combat bias-motivated violence against marginalized communities. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division emphasized the firm stance against such acts, stating, “Bias-motivated threats of violence terrorize entire communities and have no place in our society.”
Luis Quesada, assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigation Division, reaffirmed the commitment to investigating civil rights violations and deterring hate-driven actions. U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron, echoed this sentiment, stating, “You have the right to your own opinions, but you don’t have the right to threaten the lives of those who disagree with you.” The case brings into focus the ongoing struggle against prejudice and hate, while also highlighting the need to address the intersection of political discourse, violence, and marginalized communities’ safety.