Matt Shea | |
|---|---|
 Shea in 2012 | |
| Member of the Washington House of Representatives from the 4th district | |
| In office January 12, 2009 – January 11, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Lynn Schindler |
| Succeeded by | Bob McCaslin Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Matthew Thomas Shea April 18, 1974 Spokane, Washington, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses | Lisa Jenn
(m. 2002; div. 2008)Viktoriya Vinnikova (m. 2008) |
| Residence | Spokane Valley, Washington |
| Education | Gonzaga University (BA, JD) |
| Occupation | Lawyer, pastor, politician |
| Website | Official (archive) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army Washington Army National Guard |
| Years of service | 1996–2000 2001–2006 |
| Rank |  Captain |
| Battles/wars | Iraq War |
Matthew Thomas Shea (born April 18, 1974) is an American far-right lawyer, pastor, and politician. A Republican, he represented the 4th legislative district in the Washington House of Representatives from 2009 to 2021. A 2019 report published by the Washington House of Representatives accused Shea of domestic terrorism in relation to his role in a series of standoffs with federal authorities.[1][2]
In October 2018, Shea acknowledged that he had distributed a four-page manifesto which called for the killing of non-Christian males if a war were to occur and they do not agree to follow fundamentalist biblical law.[3][4] Shea was referred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for investigation as a result.[5] In April 2019, Shea was removed as State House Republican Caucus Chair for advocating violence against religious minorities and offering state surveillance of political enemies to members of hate groups.[6]
An investigative report commissioned by the House, issued on December 1, 2019, found that Shea "participated in an act of domestic terrorism against the United States", organized and supported "three armed conflicts of political violence", and advocated replacing the government with a theocracy and "the killing of all males who do not agree."[7][8] A former ally of Shea provided documents showing that Shea and his supporters were planning to seize control of the region after the outbreak of civil war, installing Shea as governmental leader in order to institute "constitutional changes" to "sanctify to Jesus Christ".[9] Immediately after the report was issued, Shea was removed from the House Republican Caucus,[10] though he refused to resign.[11]
- ^ "Report on far-right Republican Matt Shea in hands of Washington legislators". Theguardian.com. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
- ^ "Washington Legislator Matt Shea Accused Of 'Domestic Terrorism,' Report Finds". npr.org. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
- ^ "Washington State lawmaker's 'Holy Army' manifesto prompts FBI scrutiny". The Daily Beast. November 1, 2018. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
- ^ Sokol, Chad (November 2, 2018). "Washington state lawmaker Matt Shea defends advocacy for 'Holy Army' as Spokane sheriff refers his writings to FBI". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
- ^ "Lawmaker says he distributed Biblical Basis for War paper". U.S. News & World Report. AP. November 1, 2018. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
- ^ "WA Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib announces rep. Matt Shea has ..." KHQ.com. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
- ^ Romo, Vanessa (December 20, 2019). "Washington Legislator Matt Shea accused of 'domestic terrorism', report finds". NPR.org. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ Loedler, Kathy; Loedler, Paul (December 1, 2019). "Report of Investigation Regarding Representative Matt Shea". Washington State House of Representatives. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
- ^ Baker, Mike (December 23, 2019). "G.O.P. Lawmaker Had Visions of a Christian Alternative Government". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:2was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Controversial Washington lawmaker spreads views across West". apnews.com. Associated Press. January 23, 2020.