NO WHITE WASH FOR BILL WHITE - NO BAIL EITHER

Updated 8:40 p.m.

Magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski has ordered William A. White held without bond.

Okay, as is normal in situations such as the one surrounding the arrest of Bill White, the speculation, questions, and misunderstandings are flying all over the place. While I am certainly no expert on legal matters, there are a few things that I know to be true.

Bill White has been under investigation for quite some time. This isn’t something that just started in the last few weeks or months. While we enjoy many freedoms in this country and have more rights than anywhere else in the world – we also have responsibilities. When we abuse those rights and start acting irresponsibly there are laws that, quite simply, put us in our place.

The vast majority of Americans live within those laws, enjoy and cherish those rights, and never run afoul of the law. Some of us ride the cusp – push the envelope, if you will, of those legal boundaries. Even then, however, most stay within the limits. This is because those “limits” are just not that confining or restrictive. And, of course, there are those who just don’t see the boundaries, have no understanding or regard for societal mores, and live a sociopathic existence violating us and the values we hold dear.

We cannot believe that we are above the law. That’s hard for someone like Bill White to understand given his ego. We can have our beliefs and hold firm to them but we cannot trample the rights of others in our actions. Bill White is a slumlord who trampled the rights of others. He came under scrutiny because of his flamboyance and his refusal to stay within the rules and within the realm of the law.

Being a White Nationalist is not illegal. Wearing a swastika and parading down Main Street is not against the law in this country. Spewing venom against minorities falls under the umbrella of protection in America. While we, as a society, may rail against such things and find them reprehensible, we allow them because we value the freedoms that we have. But…there is a line that can’t be crossed.

Federal law-enforcement has been watching and waiting for Bill White. They have been gathering information and waiting for him to step off the curb. He has done that on several occasions – but they wanted enough for a conviction. That’s the way it works, folks. They don’t plan on wasting the Court’s time or the taxpayer’s money. They want enough to convict.

Now, the arrest warrant that was filed and put online outlines only what officials believed was necessary to get an indictment. They don’t play all their cards in front of a Grand Jury. What they present is only what they believe will achieve their goal.

The charges made, the evidence shown, and the witnesses called do not reflect their entire case. They have more evidence, they have more witnesses and more charges will be forthcoming. That’s also the way that it works.

Given the fact that Bill White has alienated so many people within the movement and has attempted to intimidate and defame so many other people within our society, the witness list could be a lengthy one. Of course all of that depends on what future charges might arise.

Given the current charges, I believe all that the government needs is a couple of witnesses to testify that either Bill told them to harass or harm the juror – or that they believed that’s what he wanted them do. And I think that has already happened.

A couple of things that the government seems to be relying heavily on is 1) the juror served on the Matt Hale trial which dealt with the solicitation of the murder of a federal judge by a white supremacist; and 2) Bill White has been advocating the murder of public figures and others on his website. There may also be those who could come forth and testify that Bill directly ordered or suggested that they engage in direct illegal activities against those he has targeted. This is all speculation on my part – but not out of the realm of possibility at this point.

Until motions start being filed and court documents start making their way to the public domain, we won’t know anything for certain. However, information in these proceedings seems to have a way of leaking out and finding a way into the media and other outlets.

Of course, there are those within the racist crowd who are saying, regardless of differences with White, this is just another example of racists being held to different standards. Somehow for me, that logic just doesn’t wash.

With headlines such as “Kill This Racist?” I would anticipate some sort of scrutiny. I would understand that by repeatedly engaging in such behavior, I was inviting the wrath of law-enforcement. I see no double standard here any more than I did in the Hale trial. The bottom line is…you cannot expect to do things like this and not attract attention. But…then…that’s precisely what Bill White wanted to do – and he got it.

Stating in open court, “I don’t blame the judge for his concerns. I write stuff that’s way out there and extreme,” and admitting that the intricate plot to murder others detailed in one of his postings was “disturbing,” did not sway Magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski.

In a desperate attempt to mitigate the damning nature of some of his writings submitted as evidence, White told the court…

“It was written to be disturbing. It is not true,” he said. “Like everything I write, I write essentially tabloid news – half true, half sensationalism and exaggeration.”

Now he sits in a jail cell with no bail and according to Laurence Hammack of the Roanoke Times…

"It’s your own words, Mr. White, that require me to detain you," Urbanski said at the end of the hearing.
As Bill’s words come back to haunt him, I can only hope that those of us he has directed his vitriol toward over the last several years stand out in his mind as well. As for “tabloid news” – even tabloids don’t publish the rantings of psychopaths who advocate murder.