The comedian was suspended Sunday from the social media platform after impersonating Elon Musk by changing her screen name to that of Twitter’s new owner. However, a user claiming to be Griffin subsequently resurfaced, using her late mom’s Twitter account TipItMaggieG and tweeting: “#FreeKathy.” Maggie Griffin died on March 17, 2020, at age 99.
Her daughter, 62, previously said she had access to her mother’s account in a tweet dated September 16, 2019. The message explained: “I’m using my beloved mother’s account. PS my IG and Facebook have also been hacked.”
Several of the new tweets from the TipItMaggieG account appear to indicate Griffin has assumed control of the account once again. One tweet includes the comment “This is KG btw.”
However, while some, like Mark Hamill, have thrown their support behind the hashtag “#FreeKathy,” others have criticized Griffin’s alleged actions. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ deputy press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, called it “ban evasion.”
Is Griffin Allowed to Use Her Mom’s Twitter?
Attorney Michael Bachner of Bachner & Associates told Newsweek that while “legal ramifications vary from state to state,” Griffin’s use of her mother’s account differs from the legal cases he has seen.
“If a person creates a false online profile in order to obtain property by impersonating someone, this is considered fraud and is prosecutable,” he said. “If no money was involved but the activity resulted in emotional damage, this can instigate a civil suit. Criminal charges are possible in rare circumstances, generally where harassment, for example, is intended.”
Griffin’s use of the account falls outside of these circumstances, however.
Bachner said, “In the situation with Kathy Griffin, she has stated that her mother authorized her to use her account, so there really is no impersonation since it is done with the consent of the mother. In addition, since it is an obvious parody, since it is public knowledge that her mother is dead, there’s no crime here. Indeed, Twitter’s own guidelines permit parody where it is openly disclaimed.”
Why Was Griffin Banned From Twitter?
Before her suspension, Griffin had changed her account name on Twitter to Elon Musk and begun urging followers to vote for Democrats in Tuesday’s midterms.
Writing as Musk on Sunday night, Griffin tweeted: “After much spirited discussion with the females in my life I’ve decided that voting blue for their choice is only right (They’re also sexy females, btw.) #VoteBlueToProtectWomen.”
That same evening, Musk said in a tweet thread that “going forward, any Twitter handles engaging in impersonation without clearly specifying ‘parody’ will be permanently suspended.”
“Previously, we issued a warning before suspension, but now that we are rolling out widespread verification, there will be no warning. This will be clearly identified as a condition for signing up to Twitter Blue,” Musk continued. “Any name change at all will cause temporary loss of verified checkmark.”
Newsmax’s Benny Johnson later confirmed Griffin’s suspension, tweeting: “BREAKING: @KathyGriffin has been permanently suspended from Twitter for impersonating @ElonMusk.”
That tweet drew a response from Musk, who said, “Actually, she was suspended for impersonating a comedian.”
Responding to Musk’s comment, the TipItMaggieG account’s user told the new Twitter CEO he “stole that joke.”
“People have been posting that joke for hours, you hack,” the tweet read. “Look, please do a better job running this company. It used to mean something. This is KG btw.”
Despite Bachner’s assessment, Griffin’s actions could still fall violate Twitter’s “misleading and deceptive identities policy,” which says users may not “impersonate individuals, groups, or organizations to mislead, confuse, or deceive others, nor use a fake identity in a manner that disrupts the experience of others on Twitter.”
Any proven violation of the policy can result in a request to modify profile settings or temporary or permanent account suspension on Twitter.
At present, the TipItMaggieG account’s bio reads: “The OFFICIAL twitter of reality superstar Maggie Griffin!”
Newsweek has reached out to Twitter and Griffin for comment.
