West Michigan resident Jim Chiodo served his country admirably in the Vietnam War. He did so hoping to preserve the American way of life, and stop the communist scourge abroad. Never could he have imagined that the country that he put his life on the line to defend would attempt to devastate his God-given rights.
But that is exactly what happened on Thursday, Aug. 17 when Judge Karen Miedema ordered Chiodo to stay far away from Holland Sentinel editor Sarah Leach. The judge upheld a personal protection order (PPO) filed against Chiodo, who opposes the newspaper’s liberal political agenda, despite his appeal.
Due to the evident collusion between the media and the court system, Chiodo effectively had his 1st Amendment rights revoked. Making matters even worse for him, he is no longer legally permitted to store his guns in his own home. Chiodo, a tea party patriot and conservative Trump supporter, finds himself as a second-class citizen in the former land of the free.
Happy that the Judge muzzled criticism against their fledgling publication, The Sentinel took the opportunity to gloat after the ruling took place.
“The Holland Sentinel and Gatehouse Media stand behind Sarah,” Sentinel publisher Brent Morris said. “We’ve supported Sarah from the beginning.”
“The courts determined the validity of Sarah’s contentions and approved the PPO,” he said. “We agree with the PPO. We’ll continue to support her in this action.”
The judge determined that Chiodo was a threat to Leach because he referred to her as a ‘lib tard’ and a ‘snowflake’ in e-mail and social media correspondences. Interpreted as a threat, this was determined enough to take Chiodo’s basic freedoms away.
“I’d like to thank all my friends who came to court [to] support me today and other supporters who weren’t able to come,” Chiodo said on Facebook.
“There are reasons why I can’t go into detail. Please bear with me. Again, thank you all and know that I am honored by your support,” Chiodo said.
The Liberty Conservative will continue to cover this story as it develops.
