On Tuesday, the Twitter account of famed attorney L. Lin Wood, who has represented Richard Jewell, Nicholas Sandmann, Mark and Patricia McCloskey, and now Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old charged with fatally shooting two people in Kenosha, was locked for supposedly violating Twitter’s terms of service. Wood had already posted about raising money for Rittenhouse’s legal defense.
Wood, furious, told Fox News that he intended to sue Twitter and its CEO Jack Dorsey, asserting, “I’m going to take Jack Dorsey’s ass down. He has been abusing the First Amendment of this country for his own agenda.”
Wood stated that his account was locked for “glorifying violence.” He continued, “I knew they were going to censor me because I’m sending a message of hope. I’m sending a message of truth. And I’m sending a message that Kyle Rittenhouse is innocent.”
“To the outside, Wood’s account looked like it was working normally, with no notifications or warnings on his tweets. But a screengrab of Wood’s account shared with Fox News shows his account ‘has been locked for violating the Twitter rules.’ Specifically, Wood was dinged for ‘violating our rules against glorifying violence,’” Fox News reported.
Wood stated, “Everybody thinks I’m still on it unless they know I’ve been blocked. That’s why we’re getting the word out they censored me for nine hours. I have no idea how to get back on. They didn’t give me any instructions.”
After hours had passed since the account was locked, Twitter issued a statement: “This account was incorrectly actioned. This has been reversed and the account has been reinstated.”
On Monday, Wood tweeted, “There will be total transparency on part of #FightBack Foundation. To date, 11,254 donors have donated total of $605, 550 toward the Foundation’s efforts to fund defense of Kyle Rittenhouse & help support & protect his family.” He added sardonically, “$0 from @Microsoft @Apple @BankofAmerica @MLB.”
There will be total transparency on part of #FightBack Foundation.
To date, 11,254 donors have donated total of $605,550 toward the Foundation’s efforts to fund defense of Kyle Rittenhouse & help support & protect his family.
$0 from @Microsoft @Apple @BankofAmerica @MLB https://t.co/T8UH1r2A1J
— Lin Wood (@LLinWood) September 1, 2020
“Wood said he’s been accumulating ‘a mountain of evidence’ to support a lawsuit against Twitter for discriminating against users based on political speech,” Fox News noted.
Wood first became famous when defending Richard Jewell, who was falsely suspected of bombing the Olympics in Centennial Olympic Park in 1996. Jewell was serving as a security guard when he found a backpack containing three pipe bombs; he notified police and helped evacuate the area, which saved many lives. He was first hailed as a hero, but then the FBI and law enforcement saw him as a suspect. The media pounced on the idea he was a suspect as well.
In July 1997, Clinton administration U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno noted the leak that had triggered the speculation by the media, saying, “I’m very sorry it happened. I think we owe him an apology. I regret the leak.”
Wood represented Sandmann in his lawsuit targeting CNN; after CNN settled out of court, Wood stated, “Long day up & back to KY for 26(f) conference with Court. @ToddMcMurtry & I have more to do in pursuit of truth & justice for Nicholas Sandmann, a fine young man. We will do it. Thanks for kind & supportive comments. Tired, but pursuit of truth & justice feels really good today.”
Long day up & back to KY for 26(f) conference with Court. @ToddMcMurtry & I have more to do in pursuit of truth & justice for Nicholas Sandmann, a fine young man. We will do it. Thanks for kind & supportive comments. Tired, but pursuit of truth & justice feels really good today.
— Lin Wood (@LLinWood) January 8, 2020