U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on June 4 sponsored legislation to make it illegal for federal law enforcement officials to be doxxed, which is the act of publicly providing personally identifiable information about an individual or organization, usually via the Internet and without a person’s consent.
The Protecting Law Enforcement from Doxxing Act, S. 1952, would establish a criminal prohibition on the public release of the name of a federal law enforcement officer with the intent to obstruct a criminal investigation or immigration enforcement operation, according to the bill’s text.
Introduction of S. 1952 follows actions by Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell and his office, which recently publicly released the names of law enforcement officers, putting them at a higher risk of being targeted by criminal gangs, said Sen. Blackburn.
“Just last week, Nashville Mayor O’Connell and his office doxxed federal law enforcement officers after the Trump administration worked with Tennessee Highway Patrol to arrest criminal illegal aliens,” Sen. Blackburn said. “My Protecting Law Enforcement from Doxxing Act would make this illegal and hold blue city mayors accountable for obstructing enforcement of our immigration laws by putting law enforcement officers in harm’s way.”
Under S. 1952, an individual found guilty of doxxing a federal law enforcement officer would face a fine and/or imprisonment of five years, according to a bill summary provided by the senator’s office.
Sen. Blackburn said she’s also called on the U.S. Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the actions of Mayor O’Connell and his office for attempting to undermine the federal government’s work to get criminals out of Tennessee communities.