Chief of Staff of Democrat Congressman Defaced Rep. Greene’s Posters: Document

Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) travels in Washington on Nov. 13, 2020. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

The chief of staff of a member of Congress defaced posters put up by a colleague, according to a newly published document.

The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) identified Timothy Hysom, chief of staff for Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), as the man who defaced the posters, which were put up by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), according to an affidavit obtained and published by Just the News.

The poster was defaced seven times between Jan. 24 and March 11.

Each time, stickers with Bible verses were placed on the poster, which states “There are Only Two Genders: Male and Female Trust the Science.”

After most of the acts took place, a surveillance camera was placed in the area and monitored by USCP personnel. The camera caught a man identified as Hysom defacing the poster on March 10 and March 11 in the same pattern as the previous defacements, according to the affidavit.

An alert was issued and, based off the alert, Hysom was stopped by officers, but allowed to go on his way. That’s when he defaced the poster yet again, according to footage from the camera.

Hysom declined to give an interview to law enforcement and retained a lawyer. The USCP officer who penned the affidavit, which was entered in support of an arrest warrant, said that Hysom destroyed seven posters for a combined loss of $350. Hysom violated District of Columbia law that prohibits people from “willfully and wantonly” defacing public or private property.

Prosecution Declined

A spokesman for Greene told The Epoch Times via email that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia informed Greene that Hysom would not be prosecuted. A USCP spokesperson told The Epoch Times via email that a person who defaced posters put up outside a congressmember’s office was referred for prosecution, but the U.S. attorney’s office “declined to prosecute, so without a filed criminal case we will not release the name to the public.”

The U.S. attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Matt Corridoni, a spokesman for Auchincloss, defended what Hysom did, saying regulations bar posters from being placed in hallways outside of members’ offices.

“Adhering a sticker—to a poster that shouldn’t be there in the first place—is hardly a federal crime. What Tim did was to adhere a series of stickers to foul, mean spirited, bullying posters outside the Congresswoman’s office. These stickers were never threatening and always respectful,” Corridoni told The Epoch Times in an email.

One sticker, according to the police report, was a picture of Jesus that stated: “I never knew you, MTG. Love (a heart sign) GOD. Matthew 7:21-23.“ Another said: ”Pharisee: a member of an ancient Jewish sect, distinguished by strict observance of the traditional and written law, and commonly held to have pretensions to superior sanctity. A self-righteous person; a hypocrite.” Another stated, “True Disciples of Christ don’t say the thing you say, act the way you act, and treat people the way you treat people.”

“While the Capitol Police were obligated to pass along Rep. Greene’s accusation of ‘destruction of public property’ to the U.S. Attorney’s office, they have set aside the charges and have declined to prosecute such a ridiculous accusation. Congressman Auchincloss knew nothing about what his chief of staff had done,” Corridoni added.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) joins a Republican congressional delegation at the southern border in Eagle Pass, Texas, on April 25, 2022. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

‘Two-tiered Justice System’

Auchincloss is one of the members of Congress whose staffers have been accused of recently letting a crew with Stephen Colbert’s show into a building near the Capitol before the crew was arrested. Corridoni previously told The Epoch Times that they “do not condone any inappropriate activity” and cannot speak to anything that happened after their contact with the crew.

During a speech on the House of Representatives floor on June 21, Greene said the lack of prosecution highlights “a two-tiered justice system.”

Hysom previously worked for Rep. Adam Lowenthal (D-Calif.). During that time, Hysom told a news outlet that he was disgusted by a man who entered the congressman’s office and took down a gay pride flag. Staffers, including Hysom, appeared to support prosecuting the man, who was not prosecuted.

Hysom “was so offended he chased that man down the hall, they wanted him prosecuted. But yet the chief of staff for Jake Auchincloss feels completely above the law and feels and says that my sign saying there’s only two genders, male and female, he says it’s a statement of hate, and therefore he’s entitled to attacking me for it,” Greene said.

“You see that is complete hypocrisy. That is not the way this works. Why is one above the other? It shouldn’t be. I thought in America, aren’t we all equal? Aren’t all our belief prospected? Isn’t our speech protected? Why is my religion under attack? Why is Christianity under attack? Why is my belief in defending women and girls’ privacy rights in sports, why is that wrong but yet it’s ok for him to defend the pride flag and be angered and upset and want to arrest and prosecute someone when they attack it? Two-tiered justice system.”