BLUE ASH, Ohio — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is asking the fundraising site GiveSendGo to remove pages raising money for Rodney Hinton Jr., the man accused of intentionally hitting and killing Hamilton County Deputy Larry Henderson.
In a press conference, Yost said he feels the site should follow GoFundMe, which ended similar efforts on its platform. He also called for state lawmakers to pass legislation that would ban crowdfunding for people charged with violent crimes.
"We shouldn't be crowdfunding an evildoer," Yost said. "I'm appealing to them today to take down this site."
WATCH: Yost, attorney for late deputy call for removal of fundraisers for Rodney Hinton Jr.
Two pages on GiveSendGo have raised nearly $100,000 combined for Hinton. We reached out to GiveSendGo for comment, but so far, representatives have not gotten back to us.
While Yost said it appears the company is not violating any state laws, one of the lawyers for the Henderson family is threatening to sue them.
"They are commercially profiting off of the murder of this deputy," said Zachary Gottesman, attorney for the family of Henderson. "It's a flagrant violation of Ohio public policy that anyone should profit from their criminal acts and it's our intentions as attorneys for the family to take legal actions to put an end to that and to recover any proceeds that ensure that those proceeds are discouraged, so that this criminal and his family do not profit based on the death of this deputy."
Dan Hils with Frontline Advisors argues GiveSendGo is not policing its own policies about violence. Hils read some of the comments from donors aloud: "Death to all pigs, death to all pigs."
"I think it should be the policy of Ohio that crowdfunding platforms are not permitted to raise money on the backs of a notorious and disgusting crime, period," Yost said. "It may well be that the General Assembly of Ohio should undertake to pass a law."
We asked Yost about potential challenges to a hypothetical law surrounding First Amendment questions.
"The constitutional question is a good one, and under the First Amendment, the state or government may regulate speech if there's compelling governmental interest and it is narrowly tailored," said Yost. "We have long-regulated fundraising, charitable organizations, and charitable fundraising and it is perfectly within the bounds of the constitution, that's what I'm asking for here is a reasonable rule, common-sense rule that will reflect that."
