The USSC's silence on the TX abortion law legalizes vigilantism.

[no_hypocrisy]

Legal vigilantism is an oxymoron.

A vigilante is essentially someone who takes the law into their own hands when they believe that the law is not doing enough to ensure justice. Sometimes, a group of citizens form to undertake the law enforcement responsibilities of their community, without any legal authority, according to their own sense of right and wrong.

For example, neighborhood watches work with local police, but they have no authority to make arrests or take actions, as that is typically reserved for police officers. Thus, when a neighborhood watch takes matters into its own hands, instead of sharing information with local peace officers, it may be considered an act of vigilantism.

Vigilantism can also be used to describe a general state of lawlessness or chaos, when competing groups of people, such as opposing gangs, all claim to enforce the law in a given area affected by that lawlessness.

-snip-

There is a very thin line between serving the public, and breaking the law. Regardless of your intention, vigilantism is illegal.

-more-

https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/vigilante-liability.html

[Johnny2X2X]

1. Fight fire with fire

We need our own organization who outs these vigilantes so they can pay a severe social price for their crimes against women.

[BeerBarrelPolka]

2. It's existed for a long time

Here in Illinois, groups advocated for you to turn in suspected drunk drivers and collect money for it.

Here's an article from 1990:

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1990-05-04-9002060004-story.html

[luv2fly]

4. I've called 911 when driving behind someone clearly impaired

My only reward was getting them off the damn road, no financial incentive required.

Well once I got to see the cops actually stop the dude, that was pretty rewarding.

[BeerBarrelPolka]

5. My best friend

had someone call the cops on his driving just out of revenge. He was not impaired. But he was hassled by the cop to explain why someone would report him. At the time, my friend had no idea why someone would. It wasn't until a while later that he found out the truth.

[MacKasey]

3. Is this a form of sharia law?

[Irish_Dem]

6. This along with the new no license open cary law is going to lead to violence.

Which is what the GOP wants. Citizens fighting citizens.

[FalloutShelter]

7. This is nothing new for the forced birthers.

I have been involved in the women's rights movement since the '70s, and in PA, it was a common practice for the forced birthers to attend reproductive rights rallies and take photos of those attending. They would then take those photos and post them on the bulletin boards of their churches so that neighbors might identify you and then either shun or harass you.

My neighbors actively shunned me for twenty years. They came to my door, bible in hand, to save me one day, and I really let them have it with both barrels. They left in a hurry, and we never spoke again.

When I acted as an escort at a clinic in Philly, they did the same thing... took pictures. So even before the term doxing was coined, they were doxing us.

They have always been vigilantes, but now they have the cover and approval of the law. This is horrifying.