Morrison v. Neeley et al

On May 6, 2026, in Denver, Colorado, plaintiff Taylor Morrison was targeted in a coordinated online harassment campaign led by Alex Neeley and two co-defendants after Morrison publicly opposed extremist groups on social media. The defendants published Morrison’s home address, posted incitements to violence, and sent graphic death threats. That evening, an armed individual attempted to force entry into Morrison’s residence; police intercepted the attack. Morrison filed a civil lawsuit for intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligence, while state prosecutors charged Neeley with felony cyberstalking, criminal incitement, and hate crime enhancements. The case rapidly drew national attention, pitting claims of constitutionally protected political speech against criminal threats and doxxing-enabled vigilante violence.

In November 2026, a federal jury convicted Alex Neeley on charges of cyberstalking and hate crime, yielding a 9-year prison sentence. The civil jury awarded Taylor Morrison $4.2 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Two co-defendants pleaded guilty to reduced charges and agreed to testify. The case is currently under appeal before the Tenth Circuit.

The core dispute centered on whether the defendants’ online posts constituted unprotected “true threats” and incitement, or merely hyperbolic political rhetoric shielded by the First Amendment. A secondary issue examined the responsibility of social media platforms that hosted the doxxing content and delayed its removal.

The Morrison case spurred Colorado to enact the “Digital Safety and Doxxing Prevention Act,” imposing mandatory response timelines for platforms hosting harmful personal data. Nationally, the verdict reinforced the narrow “true threat” doctrine for online conduct, prompting legislative proposals to modernize federal cyberstalking statutes and fueling renewed debate on the intersection of free expression and digital safety.