A jury found an Ohio political blogger guilty of telecommunications harassment after he sent an explicit image of Shrek to a Republican state senator. On Friday, a judge ordered DJ Byrnes, owner of political commentary blog The Rooster, to pay a $200 fine, according to a report from the Columbus Dispatch.
Byrnes texted Ohio Sen. Jerry Cirino in May after he dropped out of the state’s Senate presidential race. As reported by the Columbus Dispatch, Byrnes sent a nude image of Shrek alongside the message: “Good to see you finally made your humiliation public, Young Mussolini! THE PATRIOTS CAUCUS sends its regards!!!!!!!!!!”
Cirino filed a police report against Byrnes, “describing his messages as pornographic and harassing,” according to the Columbus Dispatch. Four state police officers arrested Byrnes at the Ohio statehouse in June, the Columbus Dispatch reports. Byrnes was reportedly held in jail overnight even though he posted bail.
”I can’t wait for the jury to see the image that he sent to me,” Cirino said ahead of the trial, according to the Columbus Dispatch. Byrnes pleaded not guilty to telecommunications harassment, claiming that the text was protected free speech.
“This wasn’t a free speech issue; this was a harassment statute that I believed he was in violation of,” Cirino said following the ruling, as reported by News 5 Cleveland. “Obviously, he’s free to write on his blog whatever he wants. I just don’t want to be accosted in the Statehouse in the future.”
