Congress passed broadly-worded laws after the Civil War making it a crime to seek to deprive a person of their voting and civil rights. Right wing internet trolls are now being prosecuted under these laws, creating a controversy about when the vagueness of the laws violate the First Amendment freedom of speech. Douglass Mackey posted lies urging people to "vote by text" to avoid long lines and inconvenience and was convicted in federal court and sentenced to 7 months in prison. Some argue that the laws are too vague and that the federal Court of Appeals should overturn the conviction due to the failure of Congress to pass more specific laws criminalizing lies about the mechanics of voting.
Charlie Cooper
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