FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas – In June, Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Commissioner Democratic nominee Taral Patel was indicted by a grand jury on four felony counts of online impersonation.
He was arrested on a felony charge of online misrepresentation and a class-A misdemeanor charge of identity misrepresentation.
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Patel is accused of creating fake social media accounts to post discouraging remarks about his opponent, Andy Meyers, and to direct racial attacks at himself.
KPRC 2 Investigates spoke with a Houston area attorney about Patel’s charges and why the commissioner nominee can’t claim Freedom of Speech as a defense for his crimes.
“You know I’m a strong believer of the constitution and freedom of speech, but in situations like fraud or content or language that may bring about threat or home or even defamation are not protected by Freedom of Speech,” Houston attorney Husein Hadi said.
So what is Freedom of Speech?
According to the First Amendment, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Webster defines freedom of speech as the right to express information, ideas, and opinions free of government restrictions based on content and subject only to reasonable limitations (as the power of the government to avoid a clear and present danger) especially as guaranteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
Breakdown of what Patel did to garner charges:
According to court records, Patel created the social media accounts in October 2022 and continued to post on them through May 2024. On those accounts, he portrayed himself as someone he is not over the internet, a violation of the Texas Penal Code when done without proper consent and with the intent to harm, defraud, intimidate, or threaten any person according to the code.
Authorities say the acts of impersonation were done on an account allegedly created by Patel under a different persona, where he attacked candidates—including racial attacks on himself or claimed to work with them. He allegedly posted under the screen name “Antonio Scalywag.”
Investigators say the acts took place primarily on Facebook. Grand jury subpoenas were issued to Meta Platforms, Google, Comcast, T-Mobile and JP Morgan Chase Bank to track the information and link it back to Patel, according to legal records.
Despite the felony indictments, Patel remains in the race and has not publicly addressed his arrest or the ongoing investigation.
On Monday, Patel made an appearance in court for a “discovery hearing,” but quickly exited the courtroom, avoiding questions from reporters as he left the Fort Bend County Justice Center.