The provocateur accused of racial harassment of former state representative Kiah Morris was charged Wednesday night with buying banned high-capacity firearms magazines.
The Vermont State Police announced the arrest of Bennington resident Max B. Misch, 36, in a brief news release. He was scheduled for arraignment Thursday in state court in Bennington.
Morris, the only black woman in the Vermont legislature before she resigned last fall, cited Misch’s torrent of hateful online messages as one reason she stepped down. She previously obtained a yearlong protective order against him. Misch is an avowed white nationalist.
On January 14, Misch crashed a Bennington press conference during which Attorney General T.J. Donovan announced he would not bring criminal charges against anyone accused of harassing Morris. Misch strode into the event, held at the Congregation Beth El synagogue, bearing the image of alt-right meme Pepe the Frog on his shirt.
Just 11 days later, the Vermont State Police began investigating an allegation that Misch had purchased high-capacity magazines, according to the news release. Last year, Vermont banned the purchase or possession of magazines that contain more than 10 rounds for a long gun or 15 rounds for a handgun, though people can legally possess magazines they owned before the law went into effect.
Police executed a search warrant at Misch’s residence on Wednesday, the release states. Misch faces up to a year in jail and a $500 fine.
Donovan’s office will prosecute the case, according to the release.
The state police, Bennington police and the Attorney General’s Office did not return calls for comment Wednesday evening.
Clarification, March 5, 2019: This story has been updated to clarify Vermont’s law regarding the possession of high-capacity magazines.
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@The Oracle “Remember that part in the constitution where it talks about our right to ammo magazines? Yeah, I don’t either.”
If anyone were to be so childishly naive as to take such as flaccid argument seriously, then I guess they’d have to include internet news and comments sections in the same as being outside of your rights. Or do you believe those words are included in the constitution?
The constitution is not now, nor has it ever been, a list of restrictions on the daily private lives of the people who wrote it. It is and always was, a restriction by which the federal government is allowed, by the consent of the people, to exist at all. A set of bounds outside of which it will not tread. The Bill of Rights being add some time later to clarify the fact that the people have, always and forever more, rights that are untouchable and unalienable. The government being a creation of man, man at all times stands above the government he created, unless you prefer living as a slave to other men.
The use of the word “trolled” in the headline truly seems to understate what was done to Representative Morris and her family.
“Trolling” is usually understood to be posting in on-line discussion boards and social media deliberately provocative or offensive statements designed to disrupt the conversation or produce a reaction.
That doesn’t begin to convey the degree of racist harassment and intimidation, the sustained campaign of hate against Kiah, the efforts to drive her and her family from public service and from the community.
Let’s not whitewash the severity of what happened with a wishy-washy reference to it as “trolling”. It was so much more than that.
Remember that part in the constitution where it talks about our right to ammo magazines? Yeah, I don’t either.
He HAS to know he will be scrutinized and thank goodness!
Max is a piece of shit human being but this sure looks like politically motivated retaliation using law enforcement.
My guess is that this is more of a self inflicted gunshot wound than anything else. If he didn’t decide to troll the attorney general and Morris so publicly, there probably wouldn’t have been the same sort of scrutiny into his life. This racist troll loves the spotlight, though, and now he’s paying the price. Idiot.
The statutory ban on magazines is unconstitutional, null & void on it’s face. No act of the legislature can be construed to take away the unalienable rights of the people. Anyone involved in trying to prosecute this man under these color of law documents is acting in contempt of their oath of office, loses immunity from prosecution and is subject to numerous felony charges.
Joshua Sled, you’re right about the grandfather clause. We’ve clarified that and linked in the story to a Vermont Department of Public Safety page that clarifies some points about the gun laws passed last year. Thanks!
What’s the limit on belt-fed AR’s?
> Last year, Vermont banned the purchase or possession of magazines that contain more than 10 rounds for a long gun or 15 rounds for a handgun.
Only the purchase; possession of normal-capacity magazines already owned is grandfathered in.