US Edition
Appeals court throws out right-wing influencer’s conviction for 2016 election interference
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, JUL 9 – The Second Circuit ruled there was insufficient evidence that Douglass Mackey knowingly conspired to suppress votes despite 5,000 people following his meme’s false instructions, court records show.
- A federal appeals court in Manhattan vacated Douglass Mackey's 2023 conviction related to his dissemination of false information online aimed at suppressing Democratic voter turnout during the 2016 election.
- Mackey was charged after authorities claimed that between September and November 2016, he collaborated with others to distribute memes that falsely instructed Democrats to cast votes via text messages or social media, deceiving approximately 5,000 individuals according to trial evidence.
- At trial, prosecutors presented private Twitter group messages indicating an intent to interfere with voting rights, while Judge Ann M. Donnelly called Mackey a leading conspiracy member assaulting democracy during his sentencing to seven months in prison.
- The three-judge 2nd Circuit panel ruled that posting memes alone does not prove conspiracy without evidence Mackey knowingly agreed with others, stating this primary evidence was flimsy and the government failed to show actual manipulation.
- The appeals court ordered a judgment of acquittal, leading Mackey to say he felt vindicated and threaten legal action against the Justice Department over his conviction.
74 Articles
74 Articles
A Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the criminal conviction against Douglass Mackey, a social media influencer known as "Ricky Vaughn", who had been found guilty in 2023 of conspiring to interfere with the right to vote during the 2016 presidential election.]]>
Twitter Troll's Conspiracy Conviction Over 2016 Hillary Clinton Election Memes Overturned
A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday to overturn the 2023 conviction of Douglass Mackey, known online as Ricky Vaughn, for social media posts made during the 2016 election regarding then-candidate Hillary Clinton. Following a one-week trial in a Brooklyn federal court, Mackey was convicted of conspiracy for posting what have been characterized as memes suggesting [...] The post Twitter Troll’s Conspiracy Conviction Over 2016 Hillary Clinton E…
Pro-Trump 'troll' who spread Hillary text-to-vote memes in 2016 has conviction tossed by appeals court
The appeals court decision is a win for Douglass Mackey, who spread false information online, including efforts to suppress Democrat voter turnout, in the run-up to 2016.
Activist’s conviction for Hillary Clinton memes tossed by appeals courts
A social media influencer who was sentenced to seven months behind bars two years ago for posting anti-Hillary Clinton memes that federal prosecutors deemed election interference for misleading voters had his conviction overturned.
Court Tosses Meme Maker’s Conviction in Free Speech Win
Douglass Mackey, known online as “Ricky Vaughn,” had his 2023 conviction overturned by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on July 9, 2025. Originally sentenced to seven months in prison over memes posted during the 2016 election, Mackey faced a possible 10‑year sentence before the conviction was stayed pending appeal. Mackey’s pro‑Trump meme campaign encouraged African‑American voters to “Text ‘Hillary’ to 55…
BIG NEWS: Remember The Memer Who Did Time For His Joke About Voting For Hillary?
The appeals court took another look at Douglass Mackey’s case, and guess what? He’s got his life back as a vindicated man! (Finally.) This is a story whose point of origin is so old that everyone but the MAGA faithful were sure that Hillary was going to dog-walk Trump in the Presidential election, and Newsweek was still printing up this ill-fated magazine cover. We were still in the Wild West of social media, when Pepe the Frog was at the peak o…
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