MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The leader of the Southern Poverty Law Center pleaded not guilty Thursday on behalf of the organization to charges that the civil rights group defrauded donors by failing to disclose that money would be paid to informants inside extremist groups.
The group's interim president and CEO, Bryan Fair, appeared in federal court in Montgomery representing the SPLC on charges of money laundering conspiracy, wire fraud and false statements
to a bank.
A grand jury indictment was filed April 21 by the U.S. Justice Department. The charges are an extraordinary strike against the Alabama-based organization, which works to combat discrimination and racism particularly in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
The SPLC has denied wrongdoing. No individuals are charged in the case.
The group has drawn criticism from conservatives including FBI Director Kash Patel, especially after it included Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA in a report about “hate and extremism.” Kirk was killed during a Utah college appearance in 2025.
Supporters say the SPLC is being unfairly targeted by the Trump administration for its civil rights triumphs.
The Justice Department accuses the organization of defrauding donors by using their money to fund the same extremism it says it fights. At least $3 million went to informants affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nations, the National Socialist Party of America and other groups between 2014 and 2023, the indictment says.
Fair has said the payments went to confidential informants to monitor threats of violence from the extremist groups. The information gathered helped save lives, he said, and was frequently shared with the FBI.
“We are outraged by the false allegations levied against SPLC,” Fair said when the charges were filed.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche recently acknowledged that the organization has a history of sharing information with law enforcement after he was challenged for saying the opposite.
“That's well-documented, and there's no dispute there. They aren't charged with any of that conduct,” Blanche said.
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Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed.
