Rebel of the Week: Justin Hallman, 16, Interrogated by FBI over Ron Paul Video

In the Silver Circle Movie, rebels struggle to restore freedom in a future under threat from an out-of-control Federal Reserve. In honor of this, we take some time each week to recognize a real-world rebel for standing up to arbitrary power and fighting for liberty.

With freedom-lovers still reeling from the recent unlawful detention of war veteran Brandon Raub over postings on Facebook, another activist named Justin Hallman found himself under investigation by the FBI after creating a YouTube video for his high school American Government class promoting the Presidential campaign of Republican Congressman Ron Paul. As you can see in the below player, this video is quite mainstream when compared to other offerings by Ron Paul supporters. Justin Hallman is only 16 years of age.

The FBI’s Lesson in Civics: Get Involved in Politics, Get Investigated by the Feds

One would think teachers and authorities would be wildly excited that Justin Hallman took such a deep interest in politics at such an early age. Most 16 year-old boys are more concerned with sports or first-person shooter video games than investigating whether or not the Maine Republican Caucus results were conducted according to the rules of the Maine Republican Party. Alas, Justin’s compilation of videos of current events must have alarmed someone at school, who, rather than praising him for his detailed understanding of the Republican primary election, contacted the FBI.

Immediately, FBI agents were sent to investigate, consuming taxpayer dollars while, whether purposefully or not, intimidating a child for creating mainstream, Constitutionally-protected video content. According to a report by PrisonPlanet.com, FBI agents interrogated Hallman about his video and a conversation he had with his teacher about the Illuminati. Our Rebel of the Week stood his ground and gave the bureaucrats a history lesson on the rise of the Bavarian Illuminati during the Age of Enlightenment.

Shockingly, these agents began asking Hallman about the hacker group Anonymous, presumably because he included a reference to them in his video during a section demonstrating the social unrest caused by failed government policy. Serious-minded adults realize that this does not imply support for Anonymous, nor is it some type of probable cause to believe he may be a part of the organization.

The Agents Allegedly Asked Hallman to Spy on Anonymous

Next, Hallman, a child, was asked by the agents to work as an undercover informant against Anonymous, a group with which he has no ties. They asked him to do this despite the 2008 death of Rachel Hoffman, a police informant who agreed to spy on drug dealers after getting caught with marijuana. When Hoffman was killed during the sting, the Florida legislature passed Rachel’s Law to prevent future tragedies of a similar nature. Though the statute doesn’t affect this case directly, it demonstrates that law enforcement agents realize the risk informants face. Asking a 16-year old to do this should be considered out-of-bounds by law enforcement. Children should be focusing on education and development, not risking their lives pursuing international hacking rings. Though Anonymous is not specifically known for violence, serving as an informant carries a serious and known risk of death.

Hallman, being the Constitutional activist he is, took detailed records of everything that happened, snapped photos for proof, and contacted media outlets to let them know that the FBI stopped by to put the chill on his freedom of speech. For that, we are proud to declare Justin Hallman this week’s Rebel of the Week!