<p>The Illinois Supreme Court will hear Jussie Smollett’s appeal after an appeals court in December upheld his conviction for disorderly conduct.</p>
<p>The conviction stems from Smollett’s 2019 claim that he was the victim of a hate crime – an allegation that proved to be false. The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday released <a href="https://ilcourtsaudio.blob.core.windows.net/antilles-resources/resources/1ddf8abe-5325-4153-8797-7f4d5b9958d2/March%2027,%202024.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a list</a> of cases that it would allow to appeal, and Smollett’s case is included.</p>
<p>In December, a state appeals court upheld Smollett’s conviction in a 2-1 vote, WLS <a href="https://abc7chicago.com/where-is-jussie-smollett-today-empire-supreme-court-now/14578113/?ex_cid=TA_WLS_TW&amp;taid=660457abf4ed320001808e38&amp;utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&amp;utm_medium=trueAnthem&amp;utm_source=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Smollett then took his appeal to the state Supreme Court. A hearing date for the appeal has not been set.</p>
<p>In January 2019, Smollett claimed he was walking alone at night in Chicago during a polar vortex when two supporters of former President Donald Trump — allegedly carrying rope and bleach — recognized him from his role on “Empire” and brutally attacked him while yelling racial and homophobic slurs.</p>
<p>Smollett returned to a friend’s home and called the police, still wearing the noose that he said was placed around his neck by his attackers.</p>
<p>It was later reported that Smollett hired two Nigerian brothers he had previously worked with to stage the attack to raise his profile and hopefully get him a raise on “Empire” and further his acting career. The brothers alleged that Smollett paid them to buy plain red hats that he later claimed were “Make American Great Again” (MAGA) hats, signaling the attackers’ support of Trump.</p>
<p>In September 2020, Smollett insisted he was “set up” and continued to claim that he was attacked by two white men wearing MAGA hats. The brothers who said they were paid to stage the attack are black. The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jussie-smollett-insists-he-was-set-up-says-he-has-two-new-witnesses-to-refuse-hoax-claims" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> at the time that Smollett suddenly started claiming he had two witnesses who could prove he did not fake the attack.</p>
<p>After Chicago police investigated Smollett’s original claims for two weeks, they suspected he had staged the attack. Smollett was charged with 16 counts of lying to police, but those charges were dropped as part of a sweetheart plea deal made with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office.</p>
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<p>A special prosecutor was assigned to review the deal, and ultimately revived six of the original charges against Smollett, who was convicted of the charges in 2021. He spent just six days in jail after he appealed his 150-day sentence.</p>
<p>In March of last year, the brothers who helped Smollett stage the attack <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/brothers-who-helped-carry-out-staged-attack-on-jussie-smollett-apologize-in-interview" target="_blank" rel="noopener">apologized</a> during an appearance on Fox News.</p>
<p>“I just first want to apologize to everyone in the audience, the country, and anyone who might have been affected by this directly. When we were asked to partake in this, we really didn’t foresee the ramifications of what something like this could do to the country,” one of the brothers said. “We allowed our ambition to cloud our judgment.”</p>


Jussie Smollett

Jussie Smollett Granted Chance To Appeal Conviction To Illinois Supreme Court

Chicago

Crime

Hate Crime

Hoax

U.S.

<p>Former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a> argued on Saturday that President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a>&#8216;s claims that Trump and his &#8220;Make America Great Again&#8221; movement <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/19/biden-says-trump-maga-republicans-are-threat-to-democracy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pose a danger</a> to democracy is a new &#8220;hoax&#8221; and that Biden is the &#8220;real threat.&#8221;</p>
<p>At a gala held by the New York Young Republican Club, Trump said Biden&#8217;s line of attack is based on &#8220;misinformation,&#8221; another in a growing list of controversies that date back to his successful 2016 campaign.</p>
<p>&#8220;The radical left Democrats, their fake news allies have unveiled their newest hoax that Donald J. And the Republican Party are a threat to democracy … This is their new line. Here we go again — &#8216;Russia, Russia, Russia,&#8217; &#8216;Mueller, Mueller, Mueller,&#8217; &#8216;Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine.&#8217; One hoax after another,&#8221; Trump said, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-calls-claims-hes-threat-democracy-hoax-says-biden-real-threat-will-save-democracy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to Fox News</a>.</p>
<p>Trump called the strategy a &#8220;desperate and shameless attempt to distract from the monstrous abuses of power the Left is committing before your very eyes.&#8221; He also said, &#8220;We call it now the threat-to-democracy hoax, because that&#8217;s what it is.&#8221;</p>
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<p>A little more than a month before the 2024 primary season gets underway, Trump and Biden are locked in a war of words ahead of what could be a 2020 rematch in the general election.</p>
<p>Biden has employed warnings about democracy being at risk as he makes his re-election pitch to voters and donors, hearkening back to the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6, 2021, and efforts by Trump and his allies to challenge the results of the 2020 election. He has also seized on Trump pledging to be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-predicts-biden-wont-be-dems-2024-nominee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a &#8220;dictator&#8221;</a> only on the first day of his second term in order to tackle issues such as border security and drilling for energy.</p>
<p>&#8220;Let me be clear,&#8221; Biden said at a fundraiser in California over the weekend. &#8220;Donald Trump poses many threats to the country, from the right to choose to civil rights to voting rights to America’s standing in the world. But the greatest threat Trump poses is to our democracy, because if we lose that, we lose everything.&#8221;</p>
<p>Trump made the case on Saturday that Biden has it backward.</p>
<p>Biden is the &#8220;real threat to democracy for two simple reasons: he&#8217;s corrupt and incompetent — grossly incompetent,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://twitter.com/RealAmVoice/status/1733702086762660079" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.</p>


Former President Donald Trump

Trump Rejects ‘Threat-To-Democracy Hoax,’ Says Biden Poses The ‘Real’ Danger

Trump Rejects 'Threat-To-Democracy Hoax,' Says Biden Poses The 'Real' Danger

2024 Election

Democracy

Donald Trump

Elections

Executive

Joe Biden

Politics

<p>The attorney representing Carlee Russell, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/carlee-russell-admits-her-entire-kidnapping-story-was-a-hoax" target="_blank" rel="noopener">admitted</a> this week that her claim that she was kidnapped was a hoax, reportedly told local media that he expects her to be criminally charged in the case.</p>
<p>The 25-year-old nursing student had claimed that she was kidnapped while checking on a toddler on the side of the road in Alabama earlier this month. Her disappearance lasted for 49 hours.</p>
<p>Attorney Emory Anthony met with Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis on Tuesday and <a href="https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/attorney-emory-anthony-representing-carlee-russell-speaks-about-meeting-with-hoover-police/">reportedly</a> told journalists afterward that he expects Russell to be charged in the case.</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a great meeting, a short meeting just to try to identify some things about where we go from here. There&#8217;s responsibilities that we need to take care of,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But it was a great meeting. And I want to commend the Hoover Police Department and the chief of police for their action and how they handled everything, so, hopefully we can get the to the end game as they say of this particular thing.&#8221;</p>
<p>In the last few days, Russell lost her job, and her boyfriend Thomar Simmons broke up with her after initially <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/carlee-russells-bf-urges-public-to-stop-bullying-amid-suspicious-claims-think-about-her-mental-health" target="_blank" rel="noopener">defending</a> her.</p>
<p>&#8220;Carlee&#8217;s actions created hurt, confusion, and dishonesty,&#8221; Simmons said in a statement. &#8220;I was made aware of the false narrative after coming to the defense of my ex Carlee Russell. Myself and my family&#8217;s nature was to react in love, and genuine concern. We are disgusted from the outcome of this entire situation. I strongly feel exactly like you all&#8230; blindsided with Carlee&#8217;s actions.&#8221;</p>
<p>During the Hoover Police Department&#8217;s last press conference, Derzis <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/carlee-russell-admits-her-entire-kidnapping-story-was-a-hoax">said</a> that law enforcement still did not know where Russell was during the 49 hours that she was reported missing, and they did not know her motivation for fabricating the story. He said that law enforcement “pretty much” knew that it was a hoax for the last week.</p>
<p>When asked if the parents were under investigation, Derzis said that “anything’s on the table” because investigators still do not know where she was or if she had any help.</p>
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<p>“This was an elaborate deal,” he said. “I mean, when you talk about calling a 911, and being up on the interstate.”</p>
<p>Derzis said that the statement from Russell will not alter the course of law enforcement’s on-going investigation.</p>


Carlee Russell

Carlee Russell’s Attorney Confirms He Expects Her To Be Charged Over Kidnapping Hoax: Report

Alabama

<p>Carlee Russell, the 25-year-old nursing student who claimed that she was kidnapped earlier this month while allegedly checking on a toddler on the side of the road in Alabama, admitted to law enforcement that she fabricated her entire story.</p>
<p>Russell attorney Emory Anthony had originally made an appointment for investigators to speak with Russell but, shortly before the interview was set to begin, Anthony provided a statement to law enforcement and asked that authorities read the entire statement at their press conference.</p>
<p>&#8220;There was no kidnapping on Thursday July 13,&#8221; the statement <a href="https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2023/07/24/carlee-russell-confesses-to-fabricating-kidnapping/70459669007/">said</a>. &#8220;My client did not see a baby on the side on the road.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;My client apologizes for her actions to this community, the volunteers who were searching for her, to the Hoover Police Department and other agencies as well, as to her friends and family,&#8221; the statement continued. &#8220;We ask for your prayers for Carlee, as she addresses her issues and attempts to move forward, understanding that she made a mistake in this matter. Carlee again asks for your forgiveness and prayers.”</p>
<p>Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis said that investigators are still going to meet with Anthony because they have more to discuss in the case, including the possibility that criminal charges will be filed with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office.</p>
<p>Derzis said that law enforcement does not know where Russell was during the 49 hours that she was reported missing, and they do not know her motivation for fabricating the story. He said that law enforcement “pretty much” knew that it was a hoax for the last week.</p>
<p>When asked if the parents were under investigation, Derzis said that “anything’s on the table” because investigators still do not know where she was or if she had any help.</p>
<p>“This was an elaborate deal,” he said. “I mean, when you talk about calling a 911, and being up on the interstate.”</p>
<p>Derzis said that the statement from Russell will not alter the course of law enforcement’s on-going investigation.</p>
<p><em>This report has been updated to include additional information.</em></p>


Carlee Russell Admits Her Entire Kidnapping Story Was A Hoax

kidnapping

<p>A Houston man who had been reported missing in 2015 but who was never really missing at all has spoken out about his ordeal.</p>
<p>Rudolph “Rudy” Farias was 17 years old when his mother reported him missing in 2015. He actually returned the next day, but for eight years his mother maintained that he was missing and introduced him as her nephew when they were out in public.</p>
<p>Farias, now 25, has spoken out for the first time since he was found sleeping outside of a church, leading to countless news articles about the “missing” man being found after eight years. Farias <a href="https://www.fox26houston.com/news/rudy-farias-houston-interview-reports-missing-he-was-8-years" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Fox 26 Houston that he felt as though he “lived in a prison” during those eight years.</p>
<p>&#8220;I just wanted to be free. I just wanted to live my life,” Farias told the outlet. &#8220;It feels like, I&#8217;m just at peace now. Just feels happy, you know?&#8221;</p>
<p>In public, Farias also told people that he was his mother’s nephew instead of her son.</p>
<p>&#8220;She would manipulate me into saying I would get arrested for speeding ticket,&#8221; he told Fox 26. &#8220;It just felt like brainwashing, honestly.&#8221;</p>
<p>He said that he could leave at any time, but felt manipulated to stay, describing himself as having “Stockholm Syndrome.” He told the outlet that he was forced to hide whenever family or friends came over to his mother’s house and that he thought she was the only person he could trust.</p>
<p>&#8220;I was stuck at home,&#8221; Farias said. &#8220;Somebody would come up, my mom would just tell me to stay in the room, keep the door locked, don&#8217;t let them in [and] don&#8217;t make any sounds.&#8221;</p>
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<p>He said that being hidden meant he had to listen to his family and friends outside.</p>
<p>&#8220;I would just have to listen to my family, be happy and cheerful on the other side of the (expletive) door,&#8221; said Farias. &#8220;I wanted to scream for them, but at the same time I couldn&#8217;t. The only person I could trust was my mom.&#8221;</p>
<p>Farias also alluded to questions about whether his mother sexually abused him during those eight years.</p>
<p>&#8220;She didn&#8217;t force herself on me or anything like that. It would never be anything like that. Just stuff that really made me uncomfortable,&#8221; he told Fox 26.</p>
<p>Last Thursday, Houston police Lt. Christopher Zamora <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/man-reported-as-missing-for-8-years-was-never-missing-at-all-houston-police-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> reporters that Farias’ mother, Janie Santana, had lied about him being missing.</p>
<p>Zamora said that during the eight years Farias was allegedly missing, police had encountered him, but both he and his mother gave false information about his identity, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/07/06/missing-rudy-farias-mother-hid-him-for-8-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.</p>
<p>“During these contacts, fictitious names and date of births were given, misleading the officers,” Zamora told reporters. “In fact, both Janie, Rudy’s mother, and Rudy himself gave fictitious names while interacting with various patrol officers.”</p>
<p>Police have declined to file charges against Santana.</p>


Missing Person Poster

Man Falsely Reported Missing For 8 Years Finally Speaks Out

Rudy Farias, Falsely Reported Missing For 8 Years, Finally Speaks Out

Houston

Missing Person

Texas

<p>Disgraced former actor <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/jussie-smollett" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jussie Smollett</a> is the focus on an upcoming docuseries, titled &#8220;Jussie Smollett: Anatomy of a Hoax,” which will drop this month on the Fox Nation channel.</p>
<p>The five part series details the events that led up to Smollett’s call to police about being attacked on the streets of Chicago in January 2019 that later turned out to be a hoax, <a href="https://deadline.com/2023/03/fox-nation-jussie-smollett-anatomy-of-a-hoax-docuseries-1235275869/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deadline</a> magazine reported.</p>
<p>The series is being billed as providing exclusive interviews with brothers Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo, who have yet to speak to the media about their part in Smollett&#8217;s elaborate plan to perpetrate the hate crime hoax, the outlet noted.</p>
<p>&#8220;Describes the intrigue and drama that caused a celebrity to become despised, shocked Chicago and beyond, and left a path of destroyed reputations and careers,&#8221; a description about the docuseires reads on <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26934427/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">IMDb</a>.</p>
<p>&#8220;The Osundairo brothers will provide all the details related to the false crime,&#8221; it added.</p>
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<p>“‘Anatomy of a Hoax&#8217; takes a deep dive into a scam that reverberated through the worlds of entertainment, pop culture and politics,&#8221; John Finley, the streaming platform&#8217;s executive vice president, shared.</p>
<p>&#8220;We&#8217;re excited for viewers to hear the real stories behind this scandal from the Osundairo brothers for the very first time,&#8221; he added.</p>
<p>📱<strong><a href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP</a></strong></p>
<p>In January 2019, Smollett told police that he was attacked by two men in Chicago at 2 a.m. who he claimed made racist and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck, poured an “unknown substance” on him, and yelled that this is “MAGA country,” The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-jussie-smollett-ordered-released-from-jail-after-serving-less-than-week-of-5-month-sentence" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The two men he claimed attacked him were the Osundairo brothers.</p>
<p>The disgraced actor was later convicted on five felony counts, which included lying to Chicago PD. In December 2021, he was sentenced to 150 days in jail, followed by 30 months probation. He was also ordered to pay $120,000 in restitution and $25,000 in fines, as previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-jussie-smollett-ordered-released-from-jail-after-serving-less-than-week-of-5-month-sentence" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. He was released from jail in March 2022, pending appeal.</p>
<p>Throughout the entire ordeal and after, Smollett has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jussie-smollett-releases-rap-single-asserting-his-innocence-attacking-critics-after-being-released-from-jail" target="_blank" rel="noopener">maintained his innocence</a>, going so far as to say that if he &#8220;had done this,&#8221; he&#8217;d &#8220;be a piece of s***,&#8221; as previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jussie-smollett-if-i-had-done-this-id-be-a-piece-of-s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.</p>
<p>&#8220;Anatomy of A Hoax&#8221; hits Fox Nation on March 13.</p>
<p><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-jussie-smollett-found-guilty-on-multiple-counts-in-hate-crime-hoax-case" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jussie Smollett Found Guilty On Multiple Counts In Hate Crime Hoax Case</a></strong></p>


Double-jeopardy claim for Jussie Smollett could hark back to landmark case against mob hit man

Jussie Smollett ‘Anatomy Of A Hoax’ Docuseries To Air In March

Celebrities

Entertainment

<p>Would you be surprised if a recent string of &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/crime" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hate crimes</a>&#8221; against a popular New York City gay bar were actually carried out by a gay man?</p>
<p>Of course not, you&#8217;re a reader of The Daily Wire and well-educated on hate crime hoaxes. Nonetheless, let&#8217;s talk about a recent story out of the Big Apple.</p>
<p>Over the last month, VERS, a gay bar in Hell&#8217;s Kitchen has experienced four separate incidents of an individual throwing bricks through its windows.</p>
<p>Immediately, New York leftists declared it was evidence of something sinister.</p>
<p>&#8220;The epidemic of anti-LGBTQ+ violence is national,&#8221; Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine tweeted. &#8220;A well-known gay bar on Manhattan’s west side has been attacked repeatedly in recent weeks. We can not stand for this.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The epidemic of anti-LGBTQ+ violence is national.</p>
<p>A well-known gay bar on Manhattan’s west side has been attacked repeatedly in recent weeks. We can not stand for this. <a href="https://t.co/Ur1mv4RPK0">https://t.co/Ur1mv4RPK0</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkLevineNYC/status/1594401119316414473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>New York City Councilmember Erik Bottcher, who represents the area, said definitively, &#8220;These are hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">This man has thrown bricks at the window of <a href="https://twitter.com/versbarnyc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@versbarnyc</a> FOUR times in recent weeks. These are hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community. Please help us identify him. If you have any information, please contact <a href="https://twitter.com/NYPDHateCrimes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYPDHateCrimes</a> at hctf@nypd.org or 1-888-440-HATE. <a href="https://t.co/GNuAMbyi7S">pic.twitter.com/GNuAMbyi7S</a></p>
<p>&mdash; NYC Council Member Erik Bottcher (@ebottcher) <a href="https://twitter.com/ebottcher/status/1594383908338008065?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Except, Bottcher botched his claims.</p>
<p>The suspect currently in custody for the attacks is 34-year-old Sean Kuilan.</p>
<p>Kuilan is not being charged with a hate crime.</p>
<p>Why not? Well, he&#8217;s gay.</p>
<p>According to The New York Post, New York Chief of Detectives James Essig <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/11/22/suspect-in-custody-in-weekend-brick-attack-at-hells-kitchen-gay-bar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> the suspect vandalized the place in defense of some gal he knows.</p>
<p>“Basically, what he says [is] he knows a girl who had a problem with one of the guys in the bar and he was ‘exacting revenge,’” Essig told the paper. “As of right now we don’t have any reason to believe it is [a hate crime].”</p>
<p>Indeed, Kuilan told authorities, &#8220;I’m gay myself,&#8221; as they took him out of the paddywagon and into court earlier this week.</p>
<p>Unlike other hate crime hoaxes, the suspect here doesn&#8217;t appear as if he is trying to perpetuate a false narrative.</p>
<p>For example, Jussie Smollett, perhaps the most famous hate crime hoax, used his celebrity status to push the notion that roaming bands of MAGA thugs were traversing through Chicago in the dead of night beating up Hollywood celebrities for being gay and liberal.</p>
<p>It obviously wasn&#8217;t true, but much of legacy media spun the narrative that conservatives had unleashed hate across the country.  Smollett was all too eager to go along with it, perhaps to boost his own street cred in the entertainment industry.</p>
<p>Kuilan just seems like a guy seeking &#8220;revenge&#8221; — whatever that means — on behalf of his friend. There is no evidence that he was also using the crimes to push the idea that there is a wave of anti-LGBTQ violence.</p>
<p>As it stands, Bottcher and Levine&#8217;s tweets about the matter are still posted. So, as far as their followers are concerned, VERS was attacked due to homophobia and bigotry — which doesn&#8217;t appear to be true.</p>
<p>Don&#8217;t expect them to retract their statements either. The Left never lets the truth get in the way of a good story that advances their cause.</p>
<p><em>The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.</em></p>


Rainbow flag

Narrative Busted: Man Throwing Bricks At NYC Gay Bar Was Actually A Gay Man Enacting ‘Revenge,’ Police Say

Narrative Busted: Man Throwing Bricks At NYC Gay Bar Was Actually A Gay Man Enacting 'Revenge,' Police Say

LGBTQ

New York City

Social Issues

<p>A former student at Viterbo University in La Crosse, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a>, who set a fire in a residence hall and claimed it was a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hate-crime">hate crime</a> against her, has had her single misdemeanor charge dismissed.</p>
<p>Victoria Unanka, who is black, was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/student-who-set-fire-in-residence-hall-as-part-of-hate-crime-hoax-charged-with-misdemeanor">initially arrested and charged</a> with arson as well as a misdemeanor count of negligent handling of burning materials, but La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke dropped the arson charge in June 2021, saying he didn’t think it applied. On October 28, 2022, the misdemeanor charge was dismissed following the prosecution’s motion regarding a diversion agreement, WXOW <a href="https://www.wxow.com/news/crime/former-viterbo-student-charged-with-starting-fire-in-residence-hall/article_c4c4f554-a869-5e4e-bc09-08d6c993a615.html">reported</a>.</p>
<p>Unanka, in November 2021, pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor, which carried a maximum penalty of nine months in prison or a $10,000 fine, or both.</p>
<p>As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/student-claims-she-is-victim-of-hate-crimes-including-a-fire-video-shows-she-set-the-fire">reported</a>, Unanka reportedly texted a friend on the night of April 18, 2021, to say that a small fire that began in her residence hall must have been targeted at her because it started next to her room. Unanka had previously claimed to be the victim of a hate crime as well, and even after she was arrested for the fire, Viterbo president Glena Temple said that the university was still investigating Unanka’s earlier claims of victimhood.</p>
<p>“This is a complex situation that involves a series of concerning incidents,” Temple said, <a href="https://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/viterbo-student-faces-charge-for-residence-hall-fire/article_91b72191-d5fc-55a0-aa2d-08d8ebacc9db.html">according to the La Crosse Tribune</a>. “We continue to investigate the incidents earlier in the semester and any potential link between them and this fire.”</p>
<p>The La Crosse Fire Department arrived on campus around 2:30 a.m. on April 18, where a fire had been reported at Marian Hall in the second-floor lounge. The fire was easily put out with a fire extinguisher, though the fire department said there was a “fair amount” of smoke damage and that ventilation was required. The department also reported minor damage to a wall and a bit of carpet. The fire was small enough not to trigger the sprinkler system.</p>
<p>Unanka allegedly told police she had been with her friends the night of the fire and returned home around midnight, at which time she made some food and went to the lounge to wash her hands. She said she didn’t go anywhere else in the residence hall before returning to her room. She also told police she didn’t see anything suspicious prior to the fire. Once the alarm went off, she said she and a friend knocked on doors to get other students out of the building.</p>
<p>When police reviewed security footage of the residence hall, however, they noticed inconsistencies in Unanka’s claims. Surveillance footage showed Unanka left her room at about 2:09 a.m. and began checking to see if other people were present. In the next five minutes, Unanaka goes into the lounge area and a bathroom before returning to her room. At 2:14 a.m., smoke could be seen on the camera footage. Unanka then began knocking on residents’ doors and pulled the fire alarm herself.</p>
<p>It was a resident adviser who told police that Unanka texted a friend to say the fire was yet another hate crime against her.</p>
<p>When police noted the inconsistencies between Unanka’s version of events and the security footage, she changed her story and admitted she intended to set the fire. She claimed she quickly decided against the fire and went back to the lounge after she went to the bathroom and attempted to clean up the smoking remnants of old food on the stove. She said the paper towels she used caught fire, and she shook them out to try to extinguish the flames. She then tossed them in the garbage can.</p>
<p>She told police she was frustrated that “no one was listening to me anymore,” purportedly about her other claims of being the victim of racist incidents.</p>
<p>Unanka left campus shortly after the fire incident.</p>


Fire in a wastepaper basket

Misdemeanor Charge Dropped Against Student Who Set Fire In Residence Hall As Part Of Hate Crime Hoax

Misdemeanor Charge Dropped Against Viterbo University Student Who Set Fire In Residence Hall As Part Of Hate Crime Hoax

Wisconsin

<p>Sacheen Littlefeather, the activist actress who rejected Marlon Brando’s ‘Godfather’ Oscar in 1973, allegedly lied about her Native American heritage – according to her two biological sisters.</p>
<p>Littlefeather, who died earlier this month, made headlines in August after the Academy of Arts and Sciences <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/snyde/ny-academy-awards-apologizes-sacheen-littlefeather-refused-marlon-brando-oscar-20220816-d5cdes2rgze3bgrc25yzrcmlwy-story.html">apologized</a> to her for the treatment she received during the 1973 Oscars. Back then, she appeared on stage in traditional Native dress and lamented the mistreatment of Native Americans by Hollywood and other industries. As she spoke, the audience booed, and presenters went on to mock her.</p>
<p>But while she may have experienced adversity almost fifty years ago, Littlefeather became an activist icon with massive public support in the decades that followed, the San Francisco Chronicle <a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/Sacheen-Littlefeather-oscar-Native-pretendian-17520648.php">reported</a>.</p>
<p>Now, however, her relatives are calling out what they claim is a “fraud” – her story of being raised by a violent father of White Mountain Apache and Yaqui Indian descent. Her biological sisters, Rosalind Cruz and Trudy Orlandi, reached out to the Chronicle to say Littlefeather wasn’t Native American at all.</p>
<p>“It’s a lie,” Orlandi told the outlet. “My father was who he was. His family came from Mexico. And my dad was born in Oxnard [California].”</p>
<p>“It is a fraud,” Cruz said. “It’s disgusting to the heritage of the tribal people. And it’s just … insulting to my parents.”</p>
<p>The sisters told the outlet in separate interviews that they knew of no Native American ancestry and that they identified as Spanish on their father’s side.</p>
<p>“I mean, you’re not gonna be a Mexican American princess,” Orlandi said of her sister’s adoption of an alleged fraudulent identity. “You’re gonna be an American Indian princess. It was more prestigious to be an American Indian than it was to be Hispanic in her mind.”</p>
<p>The Chronicle noted that Littlefeather’s claim to be of White Mountain Apache heritage was always odd, given the fact that she was born in Salinas, California – the same place where author John Steinbeck was born – with the name Marie Louise Cruz to parents Manuel Ybarra Cruz and Gertrude Barnitz. The Chronicle looked through her father’s ancestry and found no Native heritage but did find records in Mexico, with no relatives listing their race as Native American or American Indian on any official forms.</p>
<p>The Chronicle noted that just about every detail from her claims to have grown up in a poor Native American family was false. She apparently began using the identity in the 1960s as a student at San Jose State University when she was trying to become a model. Later, in 1974, she told the Berkeley Gazette that she was “an urban Indian.”</p>
<p>“Never saw a reservation till I was 17,” she told the outlet, according to the Chronicle. “I lived in a shack in Salinas, Cal. I remember the day we got a toilet, and I brought the neighborhood kids in and gave them the tour.”</p>
<p>Her sister Trudy, however, said they had a toilet growing up and never lived in a shack, saying the description “infuriates” her.</p>
<p>Both sisters insisted Littlefeather stole their father’s life story when making up her identity.</p>
<p>“My father was deaf and he had lost his hearing at 9 years old through meningitis,” Cruz told the Chronicle. “He was born into poverty. His father, George Cruz, was an alcoholic who was violent and used to beat him. And he was passed to foster homes and family. But my sister Sacheen took what happened to him.”</p>
<p>Another supposed lie from Littlefeather, whose ancestry wasn’t questioned in her recent obituaries, was the claim that she participated in the Native American occupation protest to reclaim Alcatraz Island in 1969. LaNada Warjack, a student leader of the 18-month protest, told the Chronicle that Littlefeather was never at Alcatraz.</p>
<p>“We never really knew her until the Oscar night,” Warjack told the outlet. “We thought that was really cool. That same year she did a spread in Playboy magazine. We knew no Native would do that. Especially during the 70s …The last thing we as Native women wanted anyone to think of us was as sex objects.”</p>
<p>In August, another of Littlefeather’s claims came under scrutiny – one she had told many times over the decades. She insisted that famed actor John Wayne was “in the wings” at the 1973 Oscars and had to be held back by six security men to prevent him from attacking her. Film writer and historian Farran Smith Nehme looked into the claim extensively and discovered it absolutely <a href="https://selfstyledsiren.substack.com/p/john-wayne-and-the-six-security-men">could not have happened</a>.</p>


Sacheen Littlefeather Speaking at Academy Awards

Family Of Sacheen Littlefeather, Who Rejected Marlon Brando’s Oscar, Says Her Native American Heritage ‘Is A Lie’

Family Of Sacheen Littlefeather, Who Rejected Marlon Brando's Oscar, Says Her Native American Heritage 'Is A Lie'

Hollywood

Native Americans

Oscars

<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/new-jersey">New Jersey</a> woman who concocted a story in 2017 about a homeless man giving her his last $20 for gas and parlayed the heartwarming fib into a $400,000 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gofundme">GoFundMe</a> windfall was sentenced to a year in federal prison Thursday.</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Katelyn McClure, 32, was also given three years’ probation by a federal judge in Camden and ordered to pay back the roughly 14,000 people she tricked into donating to the online fundraiser. McClure, her then-boyfriend Mark D’Amico, and homeless man Johnny Bobbitt plotted the scheme at a Philadelphia casino about a month before going public with the story.</p>
<p>&#8220;I wish that I could do more for this selfless man, who went out of his way just to help me that day,&#8221; McClure wrote in the GoFundMe message that went viral five years ago. &#8220;He is such a great guy, and talking to him each time I see him makes me want to help him more and more.&#8221;</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">“All Johnny needs is one little break,” McClure continued. “Hopefully with your help I can be the one to give it to him.”</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Her accompanying story about the humble hobo who selflessly rescued her when she ran out of gas on I-95, spawning an unlikely friendship, pulled at the nation’s heartstrings and even landed them an interview with then-NBC News star Megyn Kelly.</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">But it all unraveled when Bobbitt accused the couple of cheating him out of his cut. In a lawsuit, he alleged that the pair gave him just $75,000 and spent the rest on gambling, vacations and a new BMW.</p>
<div id="attachment_413711" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-413711" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-413711 size-medium" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-22-at-10.52.22-AM-1-300x168.png" alt="Bobbitt, McClure and D'Amico could all face state charges, too." width="300" height="168" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-22-at-10.52.22-AM-1-300x168.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-22-at-10.52.22-AM-1-1024x573.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-22-at-10.52.22-AM-1-768x430.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/07/Screen-Shot-2022-07-22-at-10.52.22-AM-1.png 1104w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /><p id="caption-attachment-413711" class="wp-caption-text">Bobbitt, McClure and D&#8217;Amico could all face state charges, too.</p></div>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Prosecutors said McClure texted a friend immediately after creating the GoFundMe page and admitted the whole thing was a scam.</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">“OK so wait, the gas part is completely made up but the guy isn&#8217;t,&#8217; McClure texted. “I had to make something up so people would feel bad. So shush about the made up stuff.&#8221;</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">“D&#8217;Amico, McClure and Bobbitt conspired to pass off a fake, feel good story that would compel donors to contribute to their cause and it worked in a very big way but it was fictitious and illegal and there are consequences,” Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina said at a press conference in 2018.</p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">D&#8217;Amico pleaded guilty and faces 27 months in prison. Bobbitt was ordered to get drug treatment. All three still face possible state charges.</p>
</div>


. Gofundme Political Fund For Us Mexico Wall Financing – 3d Illustration

Mastermind Behind GoFundMe Hoax Claiming Homeless Man Gave Her Gas Money Gets Prison Sentence

GoFundMe

New Jersey

<p>Elon Musk, embroiled in his own scandal that he has dubbed &#8220;Elongate,&#8221; jumped into the &#8220;Russiagate&#8221; story that has now found its way into a federal courtroom.</p>
<p>Over the weekend, Musk called out as a &#8220;hoax&#8221; a tweet that two-time loser Hillary Clinton posted shortly before the 2016 presidential election.</p>
<p>“Computer scientists have apparently uncovered a covert server linking the Trump Organization to a Russian-based bank,” Clinton wrote in the October 31, 2016, tweet, which included a lengthy note from one of her then-top aides, Jake Sullivan, who now serves as President Joe Biden&#8217; national security adviser.</p>
<p>&#8220;This could be the most direct link yet between Donald Trump and Moscow. Computer scientists have apparently uncovered a covert server linking the Trump Organization to a Russian-based bank,&#8221; Sullivan wrote. &#8220;This secret hotline may be the key to unlocking the mystery of Trump&#8217;s ties to Russia. It certainly seems the Trump Organization felt it had something to hide, given that it apparently took steps to conceal the link when it was discovered by journalists.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Computer scientists have apparently uncovered a covert server linking the Trump Organization to a Russian-based bank. <a href="https://t.co/8f8n9xMzUU">pic.twitter.com/8f8n9xMzUU</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) <a href="https://twitter.com/HillaryClinton/status/793250312119263233?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 1, 2016</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>A user on Twitter asked Musk on Friday evening if he planned to crack down on disinformation if his deal to purchase Twitter is finalized.</p>
<p>“I would be interested to know if, when you receive control over the company, anything was done with this at any level. Pls advise soonest,” the user wrote to Musk.</p>
<p>&#8220;You are absolutely correct. That tweet is a Clinton campaign hoax for which their campaign lawyer is undergoing a criminal trial,&#8221; Musk wrote,  linking to a story from the BBC story about the ongoing trial of Michael Sussmann, who served as an attorney for the Clinton campaign in 2016.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">You are absolutely correct. That tweet is a Clinton campaign hoax for which their campaign lawyer is undergoing a criminal trial. <a href="https://t.co/avtjEdthmA">https://t.co/avtjEdthmA</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1527720691264520192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>As part of special prosecutor John Durham&#8217;s probe into the case, he charged Sussmann with lying to the FBI when he met with an agent about former President Donald Trump’s alleged ties to Russia. Durham and his team of prosecutors say Sussmann “manipulated” the agency in an effort to alter the outcome of the election.</p>
<p>During the trial last week, Clinton&#8217;s campaign manager testified that Clinton personally authorized her campaign to share computer data &#8212; which has since been debunked &#8212; that purportedly linked Trump with a Russian bank.</p>
<p>Robby Mook, her 2016 campaign manager who testified as a defense witness for Sussmann, said he spoke with Clinton about the supposed link, and said the discussion went like, “Hey, we have this and we want to share it with a reporter,&#8221; he said.</p>
<p>“She agreed to that,” he said.</p>
<p>In his sworn testimony, Mook also acknowledged that the campaign didn&#8217;t know if the data was true. &#8220;Part of the point of giving it to a reporter was they could run it down further,&#8221; he said.</p>
<p><em>Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent for a national newspaper. He was also the a.m. editor of the Drudge Report for four years. Send tips to josephcurl@dailywire.com and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.</em></p>


Clinton Testifies On Benghazi Attack

Musk Calls Out 2016 Hillary Clinton Tweet As ‘Campaign Hoax’

Billionaire Elon Musk Calls Out 2016 Hillary Clinton Tweet As 'Campaign Hoax' As Part of Russiagate

Elon Musk

Hillary Clinton

Michael Sussmann

Robby Mook

Russiagate

Twitter

<p>Keith Papini, whose wife Sherri falsely claimed in 2016 that she had been kidnapped, has filed for divorce, following his wife’s admission that she orchestrated the kidnapping hoax.</p>
<p>Keith filed for divorce on Wednesday and requested he receive sole custody of their two children, after standing beside Sherri for six years while she falsely claimed to have been a kidnapping victim, The Sacramento Bee <a href="https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article260660012.html">reported</a>. The filing comes after Sherri pleaded guilty to charges relating to the hoax.</p>
<p>“Now that I have learned the truth as reflected in the plea agreement that she has made with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Sacramento, I must act decisively to protect my children from the trauma caused by their mother and bring stability and calm to their lives,” Keith wrote in court documents, according to the Bee. “Both I and especially our children were traumatized by her disappearance, and I spent much time and money trying to find my wife.”</p>
<p>“The trauma inflicted on our children at the unexpected loss of their mother was heartbreaking,” he added.</p>
<p>As recently as last month, after Sherri was arrested for the kidnapping hoax, she claimed she was a victim and told her children the arrest was a mistake, Keith wrote in his affidavit.</p>
<p>“The fact that their mother lied to them on such a major issue is something they and I are having a hard time dealing with,” Keith wrote. “I do not believe she is in a position to provide good parenting and it would be inconceivable to thrust the children into that chaotic situation.”</p>
<p>Keith further requested that he be allowed to decide when Sherri can see the children.</p>
<p>Sherri pleaded guilty lying to a federal officer and mail fraud, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sherri-papini-pleads-guilty-to-2016-kidnapping-hoax">reported</a>, and released a statement expressing remorse for her crimes.</p>
<p>“I am deeply ashamed of myself for my behavior and so sorry for the pain I’ve caused my family, my friends, all the good people who needlessly suffered because of my story and those who worked so hard to try to help me,” Papini said in a statement released through her attorney, William Portanova, <a href="https://people.com/crime/sherri-papini-guilty-plea-kidnapping-hoax/?utm_source=facebook&amp;utm_medium=news_tab">according to People</a>. “I will work the rest of my life to make amends for what I have done.”</p>
<p>As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sherri-papini-claimed-she-was-kidnapped-at-gunpoint-and-branded-police-say-she-made-it-up">reported</a>, for three weeks in November 2016, the nation believed Papini had been kidnapped, prompting a nationwide search involving the FBI. Papini, 39, faked the entire kidnapping and spent the time at an ex-boyfriend’s house, police said in March. Police also announced at that time that Papini had been presented with evidence that she had faked the kidnapping and defrauded California out of more than $30,000 in victim assistance, NBC News <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/california-woman-sherri-papini-made-2016-abduction-officials-say-rcna18682?utm_source=facebook&amp;utm_medium=news_tab">reported</a>.</p>
<p>Three weeks after Papini disappeared, she was found on the side of a Yolo County freeway with a chain around her waist and a “brand” on her shoulder, which she claimed had been put on her by her kidnappers.</p>
<p>“In truth, Papini had been voluntarily staying with a former boyfriend in Costa Mesa and had harmed herself to support her false statements,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca/pr/shasta-county-woman-arrested-lying-federal-agents-regarding-kidnapping-and-defrauding">a press release</a>.</p>
<p>Papini originally told investigators that two Hispanic women kept her captive at gunpoint, and even worked with an FBI sketch artist to come up with images of the two women, which police used to search for them. It was DNA from her clothing that ultimately unraveled her story. DNA had been collected and put into a database that was routinely checked, NBC reported. It was this DNA that led to Papini’s ex-boyfriend.</p>
<p>When questioned, the ex-boyfriend, who has not been charged and thus has not been named, told investigators that Papini had told him she needed help and to get away, so he agreed to pick her up in Redding, California, and let her stay with him the entire time she was missing, according to FBI documents. The ex-boyfriend told investigators he didn’t know what Papini’s “final plan was” or if the situation meant they were getting back together.</p>
<p>The ex also said that Papini asked him to brand her using a wood-burning tool and eventually asked him to drive her back to Northern California.</p>
<p>“Investigators say the ex-boyfriend’s story was corroborated with car rental receipts and phone records, and the ex-boyfriend knew details not known to the public,” NBC reported. “The ex-boyfriend told investigators he initially thought he was just helping a friend, but after seeing the news about the later kidnapping claims he got worried, according to the affidavit.”</p>
<p>The ex-boyfriend did not contact authorities when he learned about the fake kidnappings, but told investigators that he planned to cooperate when they eventually came looking for him.</p>
<p>Papini was interviewed again in August 2020, nearly four years after her disappearance, but again claimed she had been kidnapped by two women with a gun. She also denied staying with her ex after investigators asked her about the claim.</p>


Wedding cake visual metaphor with figurine cake toppers

Kidnapping Hoaxer Sherri Papini’s Husband Files For Divorce

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