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Southern Poverty Law Center attorneys make first court appearance in fraud case

Southern Poverty Law Center attorneys make first court appearance in fraud case


Southern Poverty Law Center attorneys make first court appearance in fraud case

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Lawyers for the Southern Poverty Law Center will appear in court Thursday for the first time since the civil rights group was charged with defrauding donors by failing to disclose that money would be paid to informants inside extremist groups.

An arraignment on charges of money laundering conspiracy, wire fraud and false statements to a bank was set for Thursday in federal court in Montgomery.

The Justice Department accuses the organization of defrauding donors by using their money to fund the same extremism it says it fights. At least $3 million went to informants affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nations, the National Socialist Party of America and other groups between 2014 and 2023, the indictment says.

The SPLC denies wrongdoing, and no individual is charged.

The group has drawn criticism from conservatives including FBI Director Kash Patel, especially after it included Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA in a report about “hate and extremism.” Kirk was killed during a Utah college appearance in 2025.