A federal appeals court on Wednesday unanimously overturned the conviction of Douglass Mackey, the man prosecuted for sharing satirical memes ahead of the 2016 presidential election. The Justice Department in 2023 sentenced Mackey to “7 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to interfere with potential voters’ right to vote in the 2016 election for the Office of the President of the United States.” The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ordered a lower court to enter a judgment of acquittal for Mackey, The Telegraph noted, saying the court found that trial evidence failed to prove the government’s claim that he conspired with others to influence the election. “Douglass Mackey went to prison for posting (not even creating) a Hillary meme in 2016. It was one of the greatest injustices of the last 10 years. This is a victory, but it can never give him back the time and quality of life the US government stole from him,” Eric Matheny, attorney and co-host of “Bob & Eric Save America,” said. Douglass Mackey went to prison for posting (not even creating) a Hillary meme in 2016. It was one of the greatest injustices of the last 10 years. This is a victory, but it can never give him back the time and quality of life the US government stole from him. pic.twitter.com/NHOIeNLwZh — Eric Matheny (@ericmmatheny) July 9, 2025 “BREAKING: THE SECOND CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS HAS THROWN OUT MY CONVICTION FOR LACK OF EVIDENCE. THE CASE HAS BEEN REMANDED TO THE DISTRICT COURT WITH ORDERS TO IMMEDIATELY DISMISS. HALLELUJAH!” Mackey said. BREAKING: THE SECOND CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS HAS THROWN OUT MY CONVICTION FOR LACK OF EVIDENCE THE CASE HAS BEEN REMANDED TO THE DISTRICT COURT WITH ORDERS TO IMMEDIATELY DISMISS HALLELUJAH! — Douglass Mackey (@DougMackeyCase) July 9, 2025 “Praise God” and “God is good,” Mackey said in follow-up posts. God is good — Douglass Mackey (@DougMackeyCase) July 9, 2025 “Now we sue,” Mackey continued. “UNANIMOUS DECISION by both Republican and Democrat judges,” he added. UNANIMOUS DECISION by both Republican and Democrat judges — Douglass Mackey (@DougMackeyCase) July 9, 2025 More from The Telegraph: One of Mackey’s lawyers on his appeal was Yaakov Roth, who is now principal deputy assistant U.S. attorney general in charge of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. The federal prosecutors’ office in Brooklyn that brought the case declined to comment. In charging Mackey, prosecutors alleged that he conspired with others between September and November of 2016 to post memes, such as a photo of a woman standing in front of an “African Americans for Hillary” sign. “Avoid the Line. Vote from Home,” the tweet said. “Text ‘Hillary’ to 59925.” About 5,000 people followed the meme’s instructions, according to trial testimony. Nearly all of them received an automated response indicating that the social media posts were not associated with the Clinton campaign, and there was “no evidence at trial that Mackey’s tweets tricked anyone into failing properly to vote,” the 2nd Circuit found. Mackey, who had 58,000 followers at the time, posted under the alias Ricky Vaughn, the name of Charlie Sheen’s character in the movie “Major League.” “I would like to thank God, thank my family, thank my beautiful wife, attorney Andrew Frisch, the incredible attorneys at Jones Day, and YOU—the friends who prayed and donated and spread the word since day one,” Mackey said. I would like to thank God, thank my family, thank my beautiful wife, attorney Andrew Frisch, the incredible attorneys at Jones Day, and YOU—the friends who prayed and donated and spread the word since day one. https://t.co/xabbKXnLKR — Douglass Mackey (@DougMackeyCase) July 9, 2025 Mackey shared the 2016 meme: Ladies and Gentlemen, Government Exhibit #720 pic.twitter.com/M2NwUXzXMt — Douglass Mackey (@DougMackeyCase) July 9, 2025 Read more from the Justice Department’s 2023 release: Douglass Mackey, also known as “Ricky Vaughn,” was previously convicted of the charge of Conspiracy Against Rights at trial by a federal jury in Brooklyn. Mackey was convicted of the charge in March 2023 following a three-week trial. Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the sentence. “One of the foundational rights we hold as Americans, a right that many fought so hard to obtain, is the right to vote. The defendant weaponized disinformation in a dangerous scheme to stop targeted groups, including black and brown people and women, from participating in our democracy,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “This groundbreaking prosecution demonstrates our commitment to prosecuting those who commit crimes that threaten our democracy and seek to deprive people of their constitutional right to vote.” As proven at trial, by 2016, Mackey had established an audience on Twitter with approximately 58,000 followers. A February 2016 analysis by the MIT Media Lab ranked Mackey as one of the most significant influencers of the then-upcoming presidential election. Between September 2016 and November 2016, Mackey conspired with other influential Twitter users and with members of private online groups to use social media platforms, including Twitter, to disseminate fraudulent messages that encouraged supporters of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to “vote” via text message or social media which was legally invalid. For example, on November 1, 2016, in or around the same time that Mackey was sending tweets suggesting the importance of limiting “black turnout,” the defendant tweeted an image depicting an African American woman standing in front of an “African Americans for Hillary” sign. The ad stated: “Avoid the Line. Vote from Home,” “Text ‘Hillary’ to 59925,” and “Vote for Hillary and be a part of history.” The fine print at the bottom of the deceptive image stated: “Must be 18 or older to vote. One vote per person. Must be a legal citizen of the United States. Voting by text not available in Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska or Hawaii. Paid for by Hillary For President 2016.” The tweet included the typed hashtag “#ImWithHer,” a slogan frequently used by Hillary Clinton. On or about and before Election Day 2016, thousands of unique telephone numbers texted “Hillary” or some derivative to the 59925 text number, which had been used in multiple deceptive campaign images tweeted by Mackey and his co-conspirators. Several hours after tweeting the first image, Mackey tweeted an image depicting a woman seated at a conference room typing a message on her cell phone. This deceptive image was written in Spanish and mimicked a font used by the Clinton campaign in authentic ads. The image also included a copy of the Clinton campaign’s logo and the “ImWithHer” hashtag. This case was investigated by the FBI.

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For years, Kaui Keola carried only a faded photo and the ache of absence, her father's voice lost to war before memory could claim it. But when long-buried stories began to surface, they filled the silence with connection, like sunlight breaking through decades of quiet grief.

Despite her sons’ rare medical condition, this devoted mother is redefining what it means to thrive—sharing their journey to inspire resilience and hope. Through love, advocacy, and unwavering strength, she’s building a brighter path not just for her family, but for others facing similar challenges.

For years, Kaui Keola carried only a faded photo and the ache of absence, her father's voice lost to war before memory could claim it. But when long-buried stories began to surface, they filled the silence with connection, like sunlight breaking through decades of quiet grief.

Despite her sons’ rare medical condition, this devoted mother is redefining what it means to thrive—sharing their journey to inspire resilience and hope. Through love, advocacy, and unwavering strength, she’s building a brighter path not just for her family, but for others facing similar challenges.

For years, Kaui Keola carried only a faded photo and the ache of absence, her father's voice lost to war before memory could claim it. But when long-buried stories began to surface, they filled the silence with connection, like sunlight breaking through decades of quiet grief.

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