A political blogger from Ohio, D.J. Byrnes, had his first day in court Thursday in Willoughby, facing charges of harassment. The charges stem from Byrnes sending an explicit picture of the cartoon character Shrek to a powerful state lawmaker, Senate Finance Chair Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland).
Byrnes, who also uses the pen name “The Rooster,” is known for his sometimes outlandish methods of challenging legislators and lobbyists at the Ohio Statehouse. He frequently uses a camera or microphone to corner politicians for answers. Court documents describe Byrnes as "anti-power — if you are The Man, he’s going after you." He has amassed a significant following, with over a hundred thousand social media followers and 15,000 on his Substack account.
According to Byrnes, Cirino represents 'The Man.' Byrnes and Cirino have a history, with Byrnes claiming his reports played a role in Cirino losing his bid to become Senate president. After Cirino officially withdrew from the race, Byrnes is accused of sending him two taunting messages and a digitally altered explicit image of Shrek holding his genitals.
Senator Cirino testified that he found the image "extremely offensive." He further stated, "I would consider it to be pornographic in nature — that I didn’t ask to have seen." Cirino recounted directly calling the local police chief to file charges, stating he felt harassed. "I’ve had it with this," Cirino remembered saying, adding, "Let’s pursue something here because I am being harassed."
A local judge signed the arrest warrant, leading to Byrnes’ public arrest at the Statehouse. Despite paying his bond, records indicate Byrnes was held in custody overnight. His defense attorney questioned this, stating, "That should not happen in America," and asked the jury to consider "why did it happen in this case?"
Byrnes pleaded not guilty to telecommunications harassment, a first-degree misdemeanor. If convicted, he faces a potential sentence of up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Byrnes argues that his actions constitute free speech and claims Cirino is using his influence to jail a political opponent. Defense attorney William Livingston asserted that the image served as political speech, making the point that Cirino had politically "exposed himself." Livingston noted that the communication involved "one message and a meme and one reply, all about a single subject: the Senate race that Cirino had just lost."
Public records show that Cirino referred to the judge who signed the arrest warrant as a "good friend" in late April and had donated at least $2,500 to her political campaign in 2016. A different judge is presiding over the current case. Livingston emphasized the nature of the communication, stating, "What’s important in this case is that DJ was engaging in a political speech to a politician."
Following the hearing, Cirino addressed questions about a potential conflict of interest regarding his status as a lawmaker contacting police and courts. He stated, "There is no conflict of interest here," adding, "I have a right as a private citizen not to be harassed." Byrnes' attorneys informed the judge that Byrnes may take the stand when the jury returns Friday. Due to the possibility of testifying, Byrnes was unable to provide an interview.
Court documents also indicate that Byrnes has previously sent the explicit Shrek photo to other politicians, including Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Secretary of State Frank LaRose. He reportedly used to respond to lawmakers with the image on his X account before it was permanently suspended.
