The Southern Poverty Law Center entered a not guilty plea in federal court Thursday after the Justice Department accused the organization of misleading donors about millions of dollars paid to informants embedded within extremist groups.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Southern Poverty Law Center pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal criminal charges accusing the organization of defrauding donors by concealing payments made to informants operating inside extremist organizations.
Bryan Fair, the organization’s interim president and chief executive officer, appeared in federal court in Montgomery, Alabama, on behalf of the SPLC during the arraignment proceedings.
Federal prosecutors charged the Alabama-based civil rights organization with conspiracy to commit money laundering, wire fraud and making false statements to a bank following a grand jury indictment filed April 21 by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The case marks a major escalation in the Trump administration’s scrutiny of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group long known for tracking hate organizations and litigating civil rights cases across the South, particularly in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
No individual employees or executives were personally charged in the indictment.
According to federal prosecutors, the SPLC allegedly misled donors by failing to disclose that donor funds were being used to pay confidential informants affiliated with extremist organizations the group publicly identified as hate groups.
The indictment alleges that more than $3 million was paid between 2014 and 2023 to informants connected to groups including the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations and the National Socialist Party of America.
Justice Department officials claim the organization concealed the nature of the payments from donors and financial institutions.
The SPLC strongly denied wrongdoing following Thursday’s hearing.
“The charges against the SPLC are provably wrong; they are based on inaccurate facts and a misapplication of law,” Fair said in a statement released after the proceeding.
“Our informant program was successful in accomplishing its purposes: Threats and attacks were prevented, criminal activity was stopped, and information was gathered to dismantle the efforts of hate and extremist groups,” Fair added.
He said information collected through the program was routinely shared with federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, and argued the initiative helped prevent acts of violence.
“The SPLC is no stranger to legal threats by those on the wrong side of history,” Fair said. “In our 55 years, we have faced and prevailed in numerous fights.”
The organization has faced growing criticism from conservatives and Trump administration officials in recent years over its classification of various political and activist organizations within reports addressing extremism and hate movements.
FBI Director Kash Patel has previously criticized the SPLC, particularly after the organization included Turning Point USA in a report discussing “hate and extremism.”
Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was killed during a college appearance in Utah in 2025.
Supporters of the SPLC argue the prosecution is politically motivated retaliation tied to the organization’s civil rights work and opposition to extremist groups.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche recently acknowledged the SPLC had historically cooperated with federal law enforcement after being challenged on previous public remarks questioning the organization’s assistance to authorities.
“That’s well-documented, and there’s no dispute there. They aren’t charged with any of that conduct,” Blanche said.
The case is expected to draw national attention as it moves forward because of the SPLC’s longstanding influence in civil rights litigation and political advocacy, as well as ongoing disputes over the role of confidential informants in monitoring extremist organizations.
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