A federal judge on Thursday agreed to release a Coast Guard lieutenant who was accused of plotting domestic terrorism.
Christopher Hasson, who was accused in February of stockpiling weapons and drawing up a political hit list, will be released on bail, according to a Baltimore NBC affiliate.
Following his arrest, Hasson faced gun and drug charges to which he has pleaded not guilty, according to CNN. But because he has still not been charged with any terrorism-related counts his public defender argued that the government could not continue to detain him.
{mosads}According to CNN, Judge Charles Day, an Obama appointee, said that while he still had “grave concerns” about the alleged actions, the government had not made a case for continuing to detain Hasson.
Hasson is a self-proclaimed white nationalist and called for the use of violence to “establish a white homeland,” prosecutors said. Officials said they found a list of prominent Democrats and journalists Hasson wanted to kill, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.).
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) were allegedly listed as “poca warren” and “Sen blumen jew,” respectively on the hit list.
Prosecutors also said they found at least 15 firearms and at least 1,000 rounds of ammunition in his home.
Hasson’s lawyer will offer options for his supervised release at a later hearing, according to CNN.
“He’s got to have a whole lot of supervision,” the judge said. “Somebody who’s got eyes and ears on him like nobody’s business.”
He planned to order that Hasson remain confined to his home with electronic monitoring, according to The Associated Press. It is not clear when Hasson would be released.
Updated at 4:06 p.m.