Ohio attorney general warns student protesters in masks could face felony charges under anti-KKK law

By JULIE CARR SMYTH
Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Republican Attorney General Dave Yost has advised Ohio’s public universities that a law written to deter Ku Klux Klan demonstrations could be used to impose felony charges on students who wear face coverings during pro-Palestinian protests. In a letter Monday, Yost told presidents at Ohio’s public, four-year universities that a 1953 law makes misdemeanor-level gatherings “while wearing white caps, masks, or other disguise” a fourth-degree felony. His office said the letter was written proactively. A spokesperson for Ohio State, where dozens of protesters have been arrested in recent weeks, says the university has received the letter and is reviewing it.