Current:Home > Contact-usMaine governor signs bill restricting paramilitary training in response to neo-Nazi’s plan-LoTradeCoin
Maine governor signs bill restricting paramilitary training in response to neo-Nazi’s plan
View Date:2024-12-23 20:55:11
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — A bill to restrict paramilitary training in Maine in response to a neo-Nazi who wanted to create a training center for a “blood tribe” was signed into law by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills on Friday.
The law, which the governor signed without public comment, allows the attorney general to file for a court injunction to stop such efforts and to bring charges that carry a penalty of up to a year in jail.
It was introduced after the prominent neo-Nazi and white supremacist, Christopher Pohlhaus, sought to set up a training center on property that he ultimately sold before carrying out the plan.
Opponents argued that the measure could trample on constitutional rights, while supporters said it aims to prevent the creation of shadow military forces for purposes of sowing civil disorder.
Attorney General Aaron Frey said militias that don’t follow the orders of civilian leaders were already prohibited by the Maine Constitution, but that applies specifically to groups parading with guns in public or outfitted in clothing that looks like real military uniforms.
Before the new law, he said, he had no way to bring a criminal case against someone using military training to create civil disorder, as authorities say Pohlhaus sought to do.
Vermont took a similar action last year by banning people from owning and running paramilitary training camps. That bill came in response to a firearms training facility built without permits that neighbors called a nuisance.
The Vermont law, which came in response to a property known as Slate Ridge, prohibits people from teaching, training or demonstrating to others how to make or use firearms, explosives or incendiary devices to cause civil disorder.
It does not apply to law enforcement or educational institutions like Norwich University. Violators face up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $50,000 or both.
veryGood! (4)
Related
- AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1 as Big Ten grabs 4 of top 5 spots; Georgia, Miami out of top 10
- Australia decides against canceling Chinese company’s lease of strategically important port
- Birmingham-Southern sues Alabama state treasurer, says college was wrongfully denied loan
- Doxxing campaign against pro-Palestinian college students ramps up
- Watch out, Temu: Amazon Haul, Amazon's new discount store, is coming for the holidays
- Britney Spears explains shaving her head after years of being eyeballed
- UN nuclear agency team watches Japanese lab workers prepare fish samples from damaged nuclear plant
- Basketball Wives' Evelyn Lozada and Fiancé LaVon Lewis Break Up
- A Pipeline Runs Through It
- Jaguars vs. Saints Thursday Night Football highlights: Jacksonville hangs on at Superdome
Ranking
- Burt Bacharach, composer of classic songs, will have papers donated to Library of Congress
- Air France pilot falls off cliff to his death while hiking California’s towering Mount Whitney
- 19 Ghoulishly Good Gift Ideas for Horror Movie Fans
- Watch Bad Bunny Give a Cheeky Nod to Kendall Jenner in Saturday Night Live Promo
- ‘Maybe Happy Ending’ review: Darren Criss shines in one of the best musicals in years
- Rolling Stones and Lady Gaga give stunning performance at intimate album release show
- 'Marvel's Spider-Man 2' game features 2 web slingers: Peter Parker and Miles Morales
- Birmingham-Southern sues Alabama state treasurer, says college was wrongfully denied loan
Recommendation
-
How Jersey Shore's Sammi Sweetheart Giancola's Fiancé Justin May Supports Her on IVF Journey
-
University of Virginia says campus shooting investigation finished, findings to be released later
-
A new memoir serves up life lessons from a childhood in a Detroit Chinese restaurant
-
Will Smith calls marriage with Jada Pinkett Smith a 'sloppy public experiment in unconditional love'
-
Prominent conservative lawyer Ted Olson, who argued Bush recount and same-sex marriage cases, dies
-
Well-known mountaineer falls to her death into crevasse on Mount Dhaulagiri, the world's 7th-highest peak
-
Case dropped against North Dakota mother in baby’s death
-
Walmart, Aldi lowering Thanksgiving dinner prices for holiday season