Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland

Posted on | May 22, 2012 | 201 Comments

When terrorist Brett Kimberlin was convicted of multiple felonies in 1981,
he could have been sentenced to 230 years in federal prison.

FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
Convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin on Monday continued his effort to silence those who write about his criminal past by contacting my wife’s employer, claiming that I was “harassing” him. The resulting security concern required immediate relocation if I was to be able to continue writing about the case of Kimberlin, a violent felon, perjurer and admitted tax cheat who is employed as the director of a 501(c)3 non-profit that has collected $1.8 million in contributions since 2005.

Kimberlin was convicted of multiple federal felonies in 1981 and sentenced to 50 years in prison after he terrorized a small Indiana town in a brutal crime weeklong bombing spree. Law enforcement officials told the Indianapolis Star they believed the bombings were committed in an attempt to distract authorities investigating the 1978 murder of a 65-year-old grandmother, a crime in which Kimberlin was a suspect.

In recent months, Kimberlin has used a strategy of legal intimidation and workplace harassment in an apparent attempt to silence his critics, including blogger Seth Allen, Virginia attorney Aaron Walker and Los Angeles deputy district attorney Patrick Frey.

Walker says he and his wife were fired from their jobs because of Kimberlin’s harassment. Walker did legal work for Allen, who was sued after writing about Kimberlin’s criminal career. On Thursday, Walker published a 28,000-word account of how he says Kimberlin tried to “frame” him on a bogus assault charge.

Kimberlin is a known associate of Neal Rauhauser, a Democrat campaign consultant who has described himself as a computer “hacker.” Kimberlin, director of the tax-exempt Justice Through Music Project, is also involved in another tax-exempt group, Velvet Revolution, which has gained national attention by demanding criminal prosecution of high-profile figures including Republican strategist Karl Rove, U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Tom Donohue, and the late Internet news entrepreneur Andrew Breitbart. Kimberlin’s name also surfaced last year in connection with the so-called “Anonymous” international hacker conspiracy. Kimberlin has pursued numerous strategies to harass journalists and bloggers who have attempted to call attention to his criminal past and his notorious dishonesty — a “top-flight con man,” as Publisher’s Weekly called him in a review of award-winning journalist Mark Singer’s 1996 book, Citizen K: The Deeply Weird American Journey of Brett Kimberlin.

Convicted of drug smuggling and forging documents as well as numerous violent felonies, Kimberlin claims to have ceased his lifelong criminal career after being released from federal prison in 2000. Yet his habitual dishonesty – Kimberlin was first convicted of perjury at age 18 – appears unchanged. As recently as 2007, Time magazine reported that Kimberlin was gaining notoriety on progressive blog sites by “repeatedly asserting as fact things that are not true.” According to Walker, Kimberlin falsely accused him of assault after a courthouse encounter in which Kimberlin attempted to photograph Walker in violation of court policy. Walker says Maryland officials have refused to investigate his complaints of criminal actions by Kimberlin, and has asked his blog readers to contact those officials to demand action:

Attorney for Montgomery County
50 Maryland Avenue, 5th Floor
Rockville, Maryland 20850 [email protected]. 240-777-7300

* * * * * * *

Until I read Walker’s story Thursday morning, I had never heard of Brett Kimberlin. The story was so obviously newsworthy that I spent the next four days writing about it, including these items:

Particularly intriguing to me was the fact that Kimberlin is the director of a 501(c)3 organization which has received as much as $558,543 a year (in 2008) in contributions, including grants from major philanthropic foundations. Several people who have examined IRS filings by Kimberlin’s Justice Through Music Project and the 501(c)4 non-profit Velvet Revolution have told me they have concerns about the “thinly documented” filings (to quote one person experienced in non-profit work who wished to remain anonymous), that appear “very sketchy” (to quote another person who has examined the IRS Form 990’s for the two tax-exempt groups).

These concerns about Kimberlin’s “non-profit” activities raise intriguing questions, Walker observed Monday, considering what Singer wrote in his 1996 book about Kimberlin:

[Kimberlin] had not not yet turned nineteen when he first sought professional tax advice. “When I first started dealing dope, I went to see a lawyer in New York, who told me how to beat the tax people,” he said. “I had to pay this guy $2,500 or $3,000 for a couple of hours of consultation. Plus I had to fly out there. But it was worth it.” Other than driving an expensive car and owning a small airplane, he avoided ostentation and, along the way, the scrutiny of the tax authorities. Each year, he figured out how much he’d spent, extrapolated the income that would be required to support such a life, added ten percent, and filed a short-form tax return, taking the standard deduction. The tax code did not specifically require him to list his occupation, so he left that space blank. The only money he ever put in the bank, he said, was the money he used to pay taxes. He wrote only two checks a year — one to the Internal Revenue Service, and the other to the Indiana Department of Revenue.

Such boastfulness about his successful federal tax evasion make Kimberlin a very dubious person to be entrusted with the directorship of a tax-exempt non-profit organization that would seem to be his only source of legal income. His recent harassment of those who have written about his criminal career appears to have created renewed interest in Kimberlin’s activities. Major news organizations are rumored to be working on stories about the latest bizarre developments in the strange saga of the violent criminal known as the “Speedway Bomber,” who once falsely claimed to have sold drugs to a college-aged Dan Quayle.

My own encounter with Kimberlin’s attempted intimidation appears typical of his modus operandi, which students of psychology recognize as the habitual behavior of a deviant sociopath: Attempting to distract from his own malevolent actions by accusing his targeted enemies of doing to him what he is doing to them – and to many others. Several sources to whom I have spoken in recent days, who for obvious reasons wish to remain anonymous, have expressed suspicion that Kimberlin is doing this not only to hide his criminal past, but also in a misguided attempt to conceal his current malicious (and perhaps felonious) activities.

These are not accusations I make; rather, these are crucial elements of a newsworthy story that I am attempting to report. Kimberlin seems to be determined to prevent me – or anyone else – from reporting this story. In order to continue reporting it, without jeopardizing the safety of my family and other innocent people, I have been compelled to leave Maryland. Many people have responded to my appeal for prayer and financial assistance in this difficult crisis, but it is important to emphasize that this story is not about me.

This story is about Brett Kimberlin, a criminal of infamous reputation whose recent actions indicate that he fears widespread scrutiny. His attempts to suppress the truth have only generated more of the scrutiny Kimberlin had hoped to prevent, so that Monday for the first time his story merited a thread on the political news aggregation site Memeorandum.

— 30 —

The National Bloggers Club, Inc, a non-profit organization that organizes the annual Blog Bash event celebrating free-market bloggers, is making available a press contact for those interested in learning more about this story:

[email protected]

Update (Smitty): welcome, Instapundit readers!

Category: Crime, Terrorism, The Kimberlin Files

Comments

201 Responses to “Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland”

Peter Ingemi
May 22nd, 2012 @ 11:54 am

Stacy CALL ME
PaulLemmen
May 22nd, 2012 @ 11:58 am

I am glad that you and family are safe and sound. I will not slack off on the prayers though. If you read my latest blog entry on Kimberlin (http://wp.me/p27DAO-mM), you will see that I am also engaged in digging through financial records, just offshore instead of local. I am getting some very interesting information back from both Costa Rica and the Caymans. More digging is needed, but it looks very promising and potentially much bigger than just Kimberlin …
Dianna Deeley
May 22nd, 2012 @ 12:16 pm

Stacy – sent you an email this morning, and am following up with another.
A Bizarre Turn « An Ex-Con's View
May 22nd, 2012 @ 12:18 pm

[…] From Stacy McCain: […]
Instapundit » Blog Archive » STACY MCCAIN: Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland….
May 22nd, 2012 @ 12:44 pm

[…] STACY MCCAIN: Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland. […]
Seerak
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:07 pm

I’m unable to understand why it’s necessary to physically move because of Kimberlin. Is Maryland as a jurisdiction that dysfunctional? The entire point of goverrnment is to prevent this sort of thing, by force.

If this was the Mafia or similarly capable organization such as a union (or the government itself), hiding would be prudent. Having to uproot and relocate because of the actions of some thug, however, is just outrageous. The involved jurisdiction ought to be ashamed. I would like to think that I wouldn’t have to do the same, here in my relatively Second Amendment friendly polity…
mark
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:09 pm

call the DOJ…
when the phone prompt asks you what your race is, select black.

(all other are directed to an endless loop of johnny mathis.)

on a serious note…
formalize your concerns and complaints, print a copy online, and send the letter to the maryland DOJ. Given the felon’s record, the FBI ‘should’ just need a slight tap, in order to re-open a file on him.
Guest
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:24 pm

Well this will backfire for him, I’m posting it everywhere now.
Jeffersonian
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:26 pm

I was about to suggest that Tides and other port-side organizations failed to do a background check before larding up Kimberlin’s coffers, but then I realized that they likely did do so and concluded that a violent, amoral sociopath was precisely the sort of chap they needed. (See also: OWS)

This is a story that is too important to let fade for lack of resources. A donation is on its way. Keep up the good fight, Stacy.
Rollory
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:35 pm

The whole “I have to leave Maryland” thing isn’t clear to me. What’s the relevance? What’s the reasoning?
Evi L. Bloggerlady
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:35 pm

Stay safe.
CRD
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:37 pm

“Is Maryland as a jurisdiction that dysfunctional?”
YES!
Evi L. Bloggerlady
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:44 pm

Seerak: You obviously do not know Maryland. Spend a weekend watching John Waters’ movies and old episodes of The Wire.
McGehee
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:45 pm

Kimberlin reportedly has had actual mob ties, at least while in prison.
McGehee
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:46 pm

Read up on Kimberlin. And Maryland. All will become clear.
DonaldDouglas
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:47 pm

Massive blog post and roundup at American Power: http://is.gd/kiLZ0V

Stay safe, Robert!
jdb1972
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:52 pm

Go read about Walker’s experience with the state prosecutor’s office (in which they first were a patsy for Kimberlin, then refused to prosecute Kimberlin’s alleged crimes).

If a convicted terrorist called up your wife’s employer, how would (and should) you react?

There’s a movie in this story. Sadly, Hollywood would never film it…
claudehopper
May 22nd, 2012 @ 1:55 pm

Schwab Charitable Fund donated $10,000 to the JTM project in 2009. I questioned the donation and got the following response from the Fund. As you can see it’s a cop out.

As you may be aware, national donor
advised funds like Schwab Charitable Fund are cause-neutral, and exist to
facilitate the charitable giving of their clients. Grant recommendations are
approved for any qualified 501c3 charity in good standing, and do not in any
way reflect the views or perspectives of Schwab, Schwab Charitable or the
management of either organization.

Our charter requires us to rely on the IRS judgment of tax
exempt status and “Justice through Music Project” still has a 501c3
designation from the IRS. If and when the organization loses its 501c3
status, we will immediately stop approving grants and will inform any of our
clients who are affected.
Stacy McCain’s Wife Harassed – Family Fears For Safety « The Camp Of The Saints
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:02 pm

[…] published an update on his situation late this morning. A highlight: FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION Convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin […]
PaulLemmen
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:06 pm

Some interesting things regarding Babs and the Tides Foundation’s financial transactions in Costa Rica, digging deeper …
Blogger Flees State After Threatened by Convicted Terrorist
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:12 pm

[…] McCain, writer and creator of the site The Other McCain,was forced to leave his home in Maryland after receiving threats from convicted criminal, Brett […]
mark
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:18 pm

fascinating reading…

the name that keeps coming up in association with Kimberlin is Brad Friedman, of Bradblog and Velvetrevolution.

reading the friedman material, I had a sense of dejavu, as his imbalanced nature seemed eerily similar to david brock/media matters.

there seems to be a broad nexus of lefty loons, mining the democrat party-at-large for cash, working to their own ends and rewards.

kimberlin isn’t some lone gunman…
the only guy who has rehabbed him appears to be Friedman, but then there is also the ‘wiki purge’ on kimberlin’s infamy. In the grand scheme, kimberlin has done time, and has nothing to lose.

Friedman, otho, is inherently paranoid, and would panic under a little more light.

Focus on Friedman. There is a cabal of nuts, but from a cursory view, their interest is in collecting money, first. Reporting on kimberlin, whose ‘essential’ nature to their retarded cause escapes me, threatens their revenue, yet they are ‘still’ circling the wagons around him.

There is a missing element that ties it all together.
CrazyGaloot
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:34 pm

Why not publish Kimberlin’s address?
Fuzzy Curmudgeon
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:34 pm

Speaking as a native Hoosier who remembers the incident quite well, that boy should never have seen the light of day again. That he did indicates serious problems in our justice system.
Bob Belvedere
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:41 pm

Paging Ladd Ehlinger!

@FilmLadd:disqus
Bob Belvedere
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:41 pm

A great round-up, Donald.
Bob Belvedere
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:44 pm

This post has it’s own Memeorandum thread:
http://www.memeorandum.com/120522/p74#a120522p74
The Big Cojones: Stacy McCain vs. Speedway Bomber Brett Kimberlin
May 22nd, 2012 @ 2:50 pm

[…] In the several posts I’ve written about con artist and convicted domestic terrorist Brett Kimberlin, with respect to Aaron Walker, formerly known online as Aaron Worthing (link is to Walker’s latest harassment), and Stacy, I’ve noted that the Maryland State Prosecutor has failed to do his job, and joins therefore a long line of dedicated civil servants how permit this left-fed criminal to blithely harass and disrupt the lives and livelihoods of many people who have stoked his ire by telling the truth about him. Now it turns out that the lawfaring douche has contacted Stacy’s wife’s employers to threaten and browbeat them over having the temerit…. […]
Lima Bean
May 22nd, 2012 @ 3:26 pm

yea….this kind of attack worked well for $cientology.
paulzummo
May 22nd, 2012 @ 3:28 pm

I’d be a little scared if I lived in Maryland. But since I totally live in Atlanta I’ll just say a prayer from afar.
PaulLemmen
May 22nd, 2012 @ 3:34 pm

I’m with you on that! http://wp.me/p27DAO-mr
PaulLemmen
May 22nd, 2012 @ 3:34 pm

And descend to their level in the swamp?
Seerak
May 22nd, 2012 @ 3:46 pm

Noted and thank you.
Evi L. Bloggerlady
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:01 pm

http://evilbloggerlady.blogspot.com/2012/05/robert-stacy-mccain-and-his-family-flee.html
Small Dead Animals also posted this (thanks).
NealK
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:13 pm

Yes, actually. This is war.
Ray
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:31 pm

Just speculation… Maryland is very restrictive in issuing licenses for concealed carry, requiring law-enforcement approval. Other states near Maryland “shall issue” licenses if you are not legally disqualified. With Kimberlin’s past violent criminal record, I would want to be prepared.
SDN
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:33 pm

A lot of this stuff is public record; it should be possible to check the records of his latest filings.
Finrod Felagund
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:41 pm

Brett Kimberlin needs a wikipedia entry, but be careful, because wiki logs IP addresses. One place to link him into is the Doonesbury entry where he’s just an anonymous felon that Doonesbury tried to defend.
» Protect and support your local blogger - Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:53 pm

[…] the story has gone from bad to worse, as indicated in McCain’s post yesterday and again today: Convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin on Monday continued his effort to silence those who write […]
Adjoran
May 22nd, 2012 @ 4:55 pm

Heard on Twitter some are organizing an “Everybody Blog about Kimberlin Day” for Friday.

Cockroaches hate the bright lights.
Adobe_Walls
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:10 pm

Correct, better AT IT than they are.
Zilla of the Resistance
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:16 pm

One way or another, that terrorist midget jackass is going down, he picked the wrong army of bloggers to mess with!
#IAmMcCainicus!
cskinner99
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:18 pm

Robert: If you haven’t already, FILE FOR A Personal Protection Order (PPO). Any threat substantial enough to cause you to flee the state should be sufficient to get any rational and sane Judge to grant you said order. Ask for half-a-mile, no contact for you and your wife. Ask for an emergency hearing. It should occur in no less than 24 HOURS. Any Judge who were to deny said order could probably be appealed and then DISBARRED for abuse of discretion.

Once you have the PPO in hand, then file for a Concealed Pistol License. Nothing makes jerks like this leave you alone faster than the fact that if they appear within line-of-sight of you that they’re going to be met with a .45 to the face.
cskinner99
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:20 pm

A PPO issued to Robert and his wife should “fast-track” them for a CPL approval.
mark
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:25 pm

this pile of s**t goes rather deep…
http://www.pinknoiz.com/covert/kimberlin.html

apparently, carl levin has been an ‘advocate’ for kimberlin.
Mm
May 22nd, 2012 @ 5:50 pm

Ace has posted on this! http://ace.mu.nu/archives/329478.php
Are You Ready For “Everybody Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day”, May 25? (Video) « Nice Deb
May 22nd, 2012 @ 6:10 pm

[…] you’ve probably heard, the Brett Kimberlin saga recently took a bizarre Turn, forcing RS McCain to leave Maryland: FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION Convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin on Monday continued his effort to […]
tranquil.night
May 22nd, 2012 @ 6:44 pm

I wonder if your position as one of the only veteran independent bloggers with elite journalistic experience is aligning with the fact that you might be the only one in a position to have exposed Kimberlin given his tactics. *mind wanders*

Not to feed your ego or anything Stacy 😉 I’m truly praying for the security of your family. Hopefully we can get you some more backup if this continues to escalate.

God be with you warrior poet.
JeffS
May 22nd, 2012 @ 7:01 pm

Good fortunes in these trials, Stacy, and God watch over you and your family.
A reader
May 22nd, 2012 @ 7:05 pm

Go to Indiana, the one place Kimberlin fears, and for good reason. Get a meeting with Mitch Daniels even if it takes an open letter to Daniels on your blog, picked up by other blogs. He may help you.

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The Other McCain

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Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland

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