(Department of Justice Seal | File Photo)
By Tyler Pruett, Managing Editor
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — In a statement issued Thursday morning (November 16), U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama Jay E Town issued a statement regarding the rumors that he was investigating defamation cases against Roy Moore's accusers.
“These assertions are patently absurd. My office has not received, nor would we have the legal basis to pursue, any such defamation cases," said Town, in a statement.
The rumor that the U.S. Attorney's office was investigating Moore accusers stemmed from fake text messages and emails being received by those who had made accusations to media outlets.
Blake Usry, a Gadsden man who stated to Al.com that he knew several women that Moore flirted with, began receiving threatening text messages and voicemails after being featured in a story, Usry told the Washington Post.
The calls referencing the U.S. Attorney aren't the only misinformation being spread. An automated "robocall" has also been calling Alabama residents, falsely claiming to be a Washington Post reporter named "Bernie Bernstein." The voicemail said the reporter was looking for women, “between the ages of 54 to 57 years old willing to make damaging remarks about candidate Roy Moore for a reward of between $5,000 and $7,000,” according to the Washington Post. The calls reportedly show up as a, "Private Number."
After being asked if there was any possible criminal charges that could be filled against a person making these kind of false claims, Town's office said, "without additional facts and knowledge of the intent or purposes behind them, we can’t give any legal conclusion."
Yesterday, an Attorney representing Moore and his campaign chairman Bill Armistead held a press conference in front of Alabama GOP Headquarters in Birmingham, calling in to question the accusations made by Beverly Young Nelson and high-profile Attorney Gloria Allred on Monday.
