Latest news with #RJMay
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Can SC House Freedom Caucus survive after RJ May's child porn indictment?
When the South Carolina House Freedom Caucus launched in 2022, among the top members was state Rep. RJ May. Less than three years later May's been ousted from the group following a 10-count indictment for allegedly distributing child pornography. With more than 11 months away from primary elections, May's previous involvement with the caucus and his pending charges could play a role in whether the hard-line conservative group can survive. He was a lead strategist for the group and often the target of ire in the House. The group was even referred to as the 'May Freedom Caucus' in a federal case over whether the group could raise and spend money. The Freedom Caucus is a self-defined hard-line conservative faction within the state House chamber. In July 2024, the group changed leadership with May stepping back from his vice chairman position. The next month, May's West Columbia house was raided by Homeland Security Investigations and rumors of what the investigation could be about began to swirl. May, who owns a political consulting business, continued to be paid for campaign work by candidates according to state ethics records. In June of this year, May was indicted on 10 counts of distributing child sexual abuse material. The House Freedom Caucus says its previous connections to May won't affect the caucus in the 2026 primary elections, when opponents may try to make it an issue. Despite the House Freedom Caucus distancing themselves from May throughout this year's legislative session including saying in December he had been suspended, those in the House GOP Caucus continued to hint at their group's connections to May. Now, May could become political fodder for the 2026 primary elections depending on how many districts will feature a race with a House GOP backed candidate versus a Freedom Caucus candidate. Headed into the 2024 primary elections, the House GOP Caucus and the Freedom Caucus battled in more than 30 districts. One member the GOP caucus tried to defend lost to a candidate who eventually joined the Freedom Caucus. It had been an incremental win for the hard-line conservative caucus. Still, by the end of the 2024 elections, Republicans held a 88-seat majority in the House. The Freedom Caucus, however, only had an estimated 16 members and not enough members to stop legislation with the GOP caucus able push forward legislation without the Freedom Caucus. The SC House Freedom Caucus immediately called on May to resign after he was taken into custody by federal marshals June 11, before details of the charges were publicly released. The group put out a statement that it did not have any contact with May the entire session and said he had not been involved in caucus strategy since August. The group pointed out that May had been suspended for lack of communication with the Freedom Caucus in December. The group also formally expelled May on June 11. It was an effort to make sure they were distancing themselves from May and could continue on without him. 'The Freedom Caucus has never been about a single person,' Freedom Caucus Chairman Jordan Pace said in an interview. 'It's not about any one person or any group of people. So that's the message. Our mission is still the same, our values are still the same, and we're going to be pushing for solutions and for better legislation in every turn, just like we have from the start.' State Rep. Thomas Beach, R-Anderson, insisted members were in the dark about the legal proceedings and investigations taking place before the indictment. 'When I asked him, what's going on, he said, 'my attorney said I can't comment on any of this,'' Beach said before a Freedom Friday event in Lexington. Beach conceded that May's alleged actions don't help the conservative movement. 'The whole entire issue has given the conservative movement, not just the Freedom Caucus, but the whole entire conservative movement, a black eye,' Beach said. Beach said he's confident the caucus will survive pointing to how a proposed income tax reform package would raise taxes on 24% of filers and House members have not moved on some issues that the state Republican Party has called for. 'If those people are the same, people are going to keep our primaries open, you're still going to have a Freedom Caucus,' Beach said. 'For us conservatives, it's always been about the issues. At the end of the (day) it's the vote on the issues that matters.' The ire between the House GOP Caucus and the Freedom Caucus remains. After May's 10-count indictment was unsealed, state Rep. Micah Caskey, R-Lexington, took to social media to take his jabs at the Freedom Caucus. 'Anybody heard if Jordan Pace and the SC House Freedom Caucus have offered up any explanation for lying about their timeline for their relationship with the FC de facto leader RJ May?' Caskey posted on June 19. 'I suppose they're hoping it blows over.' May was one of the original founding members of the South Carolina House Freedom Caucus, served as vice chairman, and crafted strategy while a leader. 'When their founder/leader was arrested, what was the SC House Freedom Caucus first instinct? To lie. They just flat out lied. Not involved? Hell, they were sending him money!' Caskey posted on June 13. 'Why couldn't they just say RJ May is a despicable person?' Since May's arrest and indictment, GOP operatives have pointed out Freedom Caucus members were still paying May after the August raid, according to state ethics records. Among the handful who paid May's business Ivory Tusk were state Rep. Stephen Frank, R-Greenville, who was first elected in 2024, and state Rep. Jay Kilmartin, R-Lexington. Both Frank and Kilmartin, who had competitive elections in 2024, paid Ivory Tusk after August for campaign work or consulting. Kilmartin had a $5,450 expenditure in September and a $5,000 expenditure in February. Frank made a $1,000 payment in January, records show. Frank defeated Sarah Curran in his primary election by nearly 15 points and then won his general election over Democrat Stephen Dreyfus by more than 36 percentage points. Kilmartin had a primary challenger whom he defeated by more than 10 points, but no general election challenger. 'RJ wasn't always good about billing right away,' said state Rep. Ryan McCabe, R-Lexington, who also is a Freedom Caucus member. McCabe also paid Ivory Tusk $3,800 in January for Christmas cards. 'I wouldn't have thought much about asking him to do a Christmas card, because I believed in him,' McCabe said. 'What I knew in January is different than what I'm hearing today.' Pace defended the payments after the raid, saying May carried out work for those members. 'Everything was still sealed. We didn't know what was going on,' Pace said. 'But more importantly, services had been rendered during the election. They were paying their bills that preceded from their election primaries seven months before that.' Social media users also point to particular a payment Pace made. In December, Pace sent his $500 in dues to the South Carolina Freedom Caucus, which listed May's address. Pace said it was because May had set up the bank account for the Freedom Caucus and used his own address. The caucus was unable to get control of the account from May and in 2025 sent dues to a new bank account with the address now being a post office box in Goose Creek, state ethics records show. Those public records may be used in the 2026 primary elections, if the House GOP tries to oust Freedom Caucus members. Pace cast doubt on whether that strategy would work. 'When you use other people's ugly situations like this, where people (have) been victimized, and like when you try to use that for political gain, that's despicable, that's the lowest form of politics, and nobody wants that. Nobody should want to want that,' Pace said. The payments to May ultimately could be too nuanced for campaign mailers, but the timing of the case adjudication could be a factor down the line. If a guilty plea or verdict comes in the spring of next year in the months leading to the primary, it would lead to a return of coverage of a South Carolina Freedom Caucus founding member. 'The complete adjudication of this will be happening months from now, so there's another wave of news they're going to have to deal with,' said Walt Whetsell, the president of Starboard Communications, who has managed campaigns against Freedom Caucus members. In an interview, Caskey said previous statements and affiliations could hurt the Freedom Caucus. 'The fact that they've chosen to lie about their affiliation with him just opens the door to even more questions,' Caskey said. 'They put out a statement and say, 'Oh, well, actually, we haven't had anything to do with him since August,' never mind the December press conference and never mind the publicly available campaign disclosures where they've been sending money to him.' But will the Freedom Caucus numbers change? 'I don't think the room will look 100% the same a year from today, and that's because some of them may decide to retire. Some of them will probably run for Congress. Some of them will win, some of them will lose, just like any membership in the General Assembly,' Caskey said. McCabe, who joined the House the same year as May, has visited with him at the Edgefield County Detention Center, where he is being held pending trial. McCabe, who declined to disclose the reason for his brief June 17 visit, said he thought May was OK, but still said May was 'demoralized.' He conceded the charges and details released by investigators surprised him. 'Some things have come out that were a shock to me about his personal life, but that doesn't change that he's my friend,' McCabe said, who emphasized his comments were not on behalf of the Freedom Caucus. 'It's easy in politics to find somebody that will kick you when you're down. All your friends will kick you when you're down … So, as long as he says he's not guilty, then I believe he's entitled to his day in court and his trial and truth will come out.' McCabe said it is May's decision on whether to resign from the House, despite calls from the Freedom Caucus, the South Carolina Republican Party and the Lexington County Republican Party for May to resign. 'RJ needs to think seriously about the consequences to all the people that have been connected with him, and I trust he'll do that. I haven't had a conversation with him about that,' McCabe said.
Fox News
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
State rep used Biden-themed username to distribute child porn, feds say
A South Carolina state representative and co-founder of the Freedom Caucus was indicted on federal charges after allegedly using a Biden-themed account on a messaging app to share child sexual abuse material. A federal grand jury in Greenville, South Carolina, recently returned a 10-count indictment against Rep. Robert John "RJ" May III, a Republican from Lexington, for distributing child sexual abuse material, according U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina. In April 2024, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a cyber-tip from the social messaging app Kik, flagging several videos with the username "joebidennnn69" containing child sexual abuse, according to court documents. Investigators reportedly connected the account to May's West Columbia home IP address and mobile device, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Carolina. Authorities found at least 10 videos depicting child sexual abuse that were shared from the account, officials said. May was allegedly arrested at his home on Wednesday, according to a report from The State. The 38-year-old faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison with a minimum of five years, a fine of $250,000, and a term of at least five years of supervised release to follow any term of imprisonment. May, a father of two young children, is assigned to the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs Committee. The S.C. Freedom Caucus, where May previously served as vice chair, called for his resignation from the House. Read the statement below (App users click here) "The South Carolina Freedom Caucus stands firmly for the rule of law and the protection of children," according to the statement. "Although formal charges have not been made public yet, all indications are that these indictments will be for child sex abuse materials. These crimes are heinous and we expect that they will be fully investigated. We pray justice is served." The group said May has not been involved in the operations of the caucus since August 2024, when he was expelled from the group. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. All charges in the indictment are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law, authorities noted. Dayne Phillips, who is reportedly representing May, did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
The Guardian
13-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Republican in South Carolina arrested over distribution of child sexual abuse material
A Republican member of South Carolina's state house whom prosecutors say used the screen name 'joebidennnn69' has been arrested and charged with 10 counts of distributing sexual abuse material involving children. RJ May was arrested at his Lexington county home after a lengthy investigation and was ordered Thursday by a federal judge to remain jailed until his trial. The three-term Republican is accused of using 'joebidennnn69' to exchange 220 files of toddlers and young children involved in sex acts on the Kik social media network for about five days in spring 2024, according to court documents that graphically detailed the videos. During that timeframe, Joe Biden was in the final year of his presidency before May's fellow Republican Donald Trump won the November 2024 election to return to the White House in January. Each charge against May carries a five-to-20-year prison sentence upon conviction. Prosecutors suggested May could spend more than a decade in prison if found guilty. The files at the center of the case were uploaded and downloaded using May's home wifi network and his cellphone, prosecutors said. Some were hidden by the use of a private network, but others were directly linked to his internet addresses. At his arraignment, May's lawyer suggested someone could have used the wifi password that was shown on a board behind a photo May's wife may have posted online. Attorney Dayne Phillips also suggested investigators didn't link each Kik message directly to May. Prosecutors asked that May, 38, not be given bail because he lives at home with his wife and young children, and some of the files he is accused of sharing feature children of about the same age as his. Prosecutors said they also investigated whether May had used a fake name to travel to Colombia three times after finding videos on his laptop of him allegedly having sex with three girls or women. An agent from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) testified the three appeared to be underage and were paid. Agents have not been able to locate the three. Prosecutors said May created a Facebook account with his fake name, and his internet history showed him switching between his real account and the fake one – and even searching his primary opponent from the fake login. Phillips, May's lawyer, told the courtroom that no sexual images of toddlers or young children were found directly on his laptop or cellphone. After spending the night in jail, May appeared in court Thursday in shorts and a T-shirt with his wrists and ankles in cuffs. After being ordered to stay in jail, he appeared to blow a kiss to his wife, who was at the hearing. After May's election in 2020, he helped create the Freedom caucus, a group of the house's most conservative members who say mainstream Republicans in the chamber aren't the true conservative heart of their party. He also helped the campaigns of Republicans running against the party's house incumbents. 'We as legislators have an obligation to insure that our children have no harm done to them,' May said in January 2024 on the house floor during a debate on transgender care for minors. Sign up to Headlines US Get the most important US headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion His son charmed the house in April 2021 when May brought him to visit for his third birthday, and the boy practiced his parade wave around the chamber. The Freedom caucus released a statement Wednesday night saying they'd kicked May out of their group after his arrest. Many of his one-time friends distanced themselves from May as rumors of the investigation spread through the South Carolina statehouse. During the current session, he could largely be seen at his corner desk in the back of the 124-seat chamber, mixing with very few colleagues. The house speaker suspended May from his seat after the indictment. May's lawyer suggested he could have been framed and asked the DHS agent if she knew that May had a lot of political enemies. 'There are a fair amount of people who don't like me either, Mr Phillips,' agent Britton Lorenzen replied. In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453 or visit their website for more resources and to report child abuse or DM for help. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House GOP leader files ethics complaint against South Carolina lawmaker indicted on federal child sex crime charges
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD) — A top Republican in the South Carolina House is calling for the expulsion of a now-suspended state representative accused of using a social messaging app to distribute child sexual abuse material. State Rep. RJ May (R-Lexington), 38, was taken into custody June 11 in Lexington County following a more than one-year-long investigation into alleged child sexual exploitation crimes. A Greenville grand jury indicted May on 10 counts of distributing child sexual abuse material, and a federal judge ordered him Thursday to remain behind bars while awaiting trial. House Majority Leader Davey Hiott (R-Pickens) said in a statement Friday that he has filed a complaint with the House Ethics Committee to investigate 'not only Mr. May, but his business dealings with other members of the State House of Representatives.' 'First and foremost, we are deeply disturbed by the charges against Mr. May, and we stand fully behind law enforcement in ensuring that anyone who commits these crimes is punished to the fullest extent of the law,' Hiott said, adding 'The conduct these charges allege are reprehensible, vile, and have no place in our society, let alone in the House of Representatives.' It marks the first step in the process toward formally expelling May from the chamber, which would ultimately require a two-thirds vote once the ethics investigation has concluded. House Speaker Murrell Smith (R-Sumter) confirmed June 12 that May had been suspended without pay but declined further comment. State law requires the House Speaker to immediately suspend any member indicted on a felony charge in state or federal court. The suspension remains in effect until the member is acquitted, convicted, pleads guilty, or pleads no contest. The governor cannot unilaterally expel members of the General Assembly. The West Columbia lawmaker has represented District 88 since 2021 and helped form the hardline conservative South Carolina Freedom Caucus. He also founded Ivory Tusk Consulting, a political consulting and public relations firm for Republicans. Freedom Caucus Chair Jordan Pace (R-Berkeley) said May was expelled from the group following news of the indictment but has not been involved with its operations since last August. Pace, along with other members, has called for May's immediate resignation. Prosecutors said the investigation began in April 2024 after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a cyber-tip from the social messaging app Kik, which had flagged several videos depicting child sexual abuse shared from the user 'joebidennnn69.' At least 10 videos were shared from the account, which was later traced to May's West Columbia home IP address and mobile device. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations seized nearly three dozen electronic devices belonging to May last August as part of the ongoing criminal investigation, according to a federal court filing. Those included laptops, cell phones, hard drives, and other devices. A motion filed by federal prosecutors states that May used Kik to participate in 'multiple group chats dedicated to the trading of child pornography,' distributing approximately 220 different videos about 479 times over five days in early April, including instances where the same video was shared multiple times. The document contains graphic details about the contents of the videos and states that May's activity on the app 'reveals he has sexual interest in children the same age as his own [two] children' and a 'sexual interest in incest' between parents and children. This story is breaking and may be updated. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Arab News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Prosecutors say Republican South Carolina lawmaker used ‘joebidennnn69' to send child sex material
COLUMBIA, South Carolina: A Republican member of the South Carolina House who prosecutors say used the screen name 'joebidennnn69' has been arrested and charged with 10 counts of distributing sexual abuse material involving children. RJ May was arrested at his Lexington County home after a lengthy investigation and was ordered Thursday by a federal judge to remain jailed until his trial. The three-term Republican is accused of using 'joebidennnn69' to exchange 220 different files of toddlers and young children involved in sex acts on the Kik social media network for about five days in spring 2024, according to court documents that graphically detailed the videos. Each charge carries a five-to-20 year prison sentence upon conviction and prosecutors suggested May could spend over a decade in prison if found guilty. The files were uploaded and downloaded using May's home Wi-Fi network and his cellphone, prosecutors said. Some were hidden by the use of a private network but others were directly linked to his Internet addresses. May says someone else could have used his Wi-Fi At his arraignment, May's lawyer suggested someone could have used the Wi-Fi password that was shown on a board behind a photo May's wife may have posted online. Attorney Dayne Phillips also suggested investigators didn't link each Kik message directly to May. Prosecutors asked that May, 38, not be given bail because he lives at home with his wife and young children, and some of the files he is accused of sharing feature children of about the same age as his. May investigated for paid sex in Colombia Prosecutors said they also investigated whether May used a fake name to travel to Colombia three times after finding videos on his laptop of him allegedly having sex with three women. An agent from the Department of Homeland Security testified the women appeared to be underage and were paid. US agents have not been able to locate the women. Prosecutors said May created a Facebook account with his fake name and his Internet history showed him switching between his real account and the fake one and even searching his primary opponent from the fake login. Phillips, May's lawyer, told the courtroom that no sexual images of toddlers or young children were found directly on his laptop or cellphone. After spending the night in jail. May appeared in court Thursday in shorts and a T-shirt with his wrists and ankles in cuffs. After being ordered to stay in jail, he appeared to blow a kiss at his wife, who was at the hearing. May's political rise to the state House After May's election in 2020, he helped create the Freedom Caucus, a group of the House's most conservative members who say mainstream House Republicans aren't the true conservative heart of the GOP. He also helped the campaigns of Republicans running against GOP House incumbents. 'We as legislators have an obligation to insure that our children have no harm done to them,' May said in January 2024 on the House floor during a debate on transgender care for minors. His son charmed the House in April 2021 when May brought him to visit for his third birthday and the boy practiced his parade wave around the chamber. The Freedom Caucus released a statement Wednesday night saying they kicked May out of their group after his arrest. May spent a quiet 2025 House session Many of his onetime friends have distanced themselves from May as rumors of the investigation spread through the Statehouse. During the current session he could largely be seen at his corner desk in the back of the 124-seat chamber, mixing with very few colleagues. The House Speaker suspended May from his seat after the indictment. May's lawyer suggested he could have been framed and asked the Homeland Security agent if she knew that May had a lot of political enemies. 'There are a fair amount of people who don't like me either, Mr. Phillips,' agent Britton Lorenzen replied.
