A white Coast Guard officer who was apparently ready to go on a killing spree if President Donald Trump was impeached was on the verge of being released from jail. That was in spite of investigators discovering a stockpile of weapons and illegal drugs in Christopher Paul Hasson‘s home that they allege were part of a plot to commit acts of mass terrorism.
But because Hasson was never actually charged with terrorism, U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Day ruled on Thursday the suspected white supremacist can be conditionally released to allow him to properly prepare for his upcoming trial, the Associated Press reported.
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The news came as white domestic terrorism has been thriving, especially over the past six months.
Hasson, 50, was expected to be released within “several days” even though prosecutors have alleged that he “drew up what appeared to be a computer-spreadsheet hit list that included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic presidential hopefuls Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris. Several network TV journalists — MSNBC’s Chris Hayes and Joe Scarborough and CNN’s Chris Cuomo and Van Jones — also were mentioned.”
Investigators conducted online searches that included “what if trump illegally impeached” and “civil war if trump impeached” after searching computer files at his suburban Maryland home in February.
“Liberalist/globalist ideology is destroying traditional peoples esp white. No way to counteract without violence. It should push for more crack down bringing more people to our side. Much blood will have to be spilled to get whitey off the couch,” Hasson wrote in a draft email.
Hasson was ordered held without bail in February. But Day, the compassionate and sympathizing magistrate, later decided the charges of illegal possession of firearm silencers, possession of firearms by a drug addict and unlawful user and possession of a controlled substance didn’t meet the criteria needed to keep the former U.S. Marine behind bars.
The Coast Guard must have agreed, too, since it has kept Hasson on active duty despite the indictment. If convicted, Hasson could be sentenced to 312 years in prison, which seem light considering prosecutors believe he wanted to use his arsenal to murder sitting members of Congress during a civil war he was preparing for.
This was far from the first time that a suspected white domestic terrorist targeted Trump opponents. In October, authorities arrested Cesar Sayoc Jr., 56, of Aventura, Florida for allegedly mailing more than a dozen bombs to politicians and liberal activists who criticized the president. Sayoc pleaded guilty last month to 65 felony counts, including using weapons of mass destruction in an attempted domestic terrorist attack, but was not afforded the same privilege Hasson despite similar intentions.
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