During a single month last year, America witnessed two of the most horrific shooting attacks against law enforcement in recent memory.
During a single month last year, America witnessed two of the most horrific shooting attacks against law enforcement in recent memory.
Sovereign citizens are a diverse group of individuals whose activities and motives vary, but whose core tenets are the typically the same. They view United States citizenship, established government, authority and institutions as illegitimate and consider themselves immune from and therefore above the law.
Beginning this month, SPLC will provide regular updates on the most recent actions of Sovereign Citizen extremists.
Antigovernment “sovereign citizens” attempting to fraudulently gain possession of abandoned houses is nothing new. But taking over a restaurant? Well, that’s new to the menu of tactics.
The man who killed three Baton Rouge police officers over the weekend was a member of a black antigovernment “sovereign citizen” group whose members believe they are indigenous to the United States and beyond the reach of the federal government.
In another act of violence attributed to the antigovernment “sovereign citizens” movement, a Florida man accused of printing his own currency and defying the courts was shot and killed after a four-hour standoff with police.
The Intelligence Project identified 1,360 anti-government “Patriot” groups that were active in 2012.
Of all the sovereign citizens in all the towns in all the world, Joseph Banks is the most likely to have a movie made about him.
All donations to the SPLC are matched dollar for dollar through Dec. 31.