Project Veritas Founder Sues FBI, Claims Agency Illegally Prevented Him From Purchasing Guns

Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe filed a lawsuit against the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Thursday, claiming the agency illegally placed his name on a federal watch list that precluded him from being able to purchase a firearm.

According to the complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, O’Keefe alleges that the FBI falsely claimed that he’d been convicted of a felony and “has subsequently repeatedly, wrongfully, and without justification denied Mr. O’Keefe the ability to purchase a firearm.” The right-wing activist is asking the court to order the bureau to remove his name from the list.

O’Keefe said he attempted to purchase a firearm in New York last month but was rejected after his name appeared on the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). When O’Keefe asked the FBI why his name appeared on the list, he was told that he was identified as a convicted felon and therefore could not purchase a gun under 18 U.S.C. 922(g).

“This is patently false,” his attorney Jered Ede wrote. “Mr. O’Keefe has never been convicted by any court anywhere of any crime punishable by more than a year of imprisonment.”

“Simply put, the FBI’s placement of Mr. O’Keefe on the NICS deny list for felons is wholly and unequivocally improper and based on demonstrably false information. Notably, the FBI has not disclosed to Mr. O’Keefe what information it is relying on to place Mr. O’Keefe on its watchlist.” (Read more from “Project Veritas Founder Sues FBI, Claims Agency Illegally Prevented Him From Purchasing Guns” HERE)

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