GOP lawmaker advocated burning BLM supporters' homes -- now he's under investigation

A GOP New Hampshire state lawmaker is being investigated by law enforcement officials after he publicly called for the burning of Black Lives Matters supporters' houses.

Local news station WCVB reports that four-term GOP state Rep. James Spillane wrote in a Facebook post this week that anyone who has a Black Lives Matter sign on their lawn deserves to have their house burned and looted.

"Public Service Announcement: If you see a BLM sign on a lawn it’s the same as having the porch light on for Halloween," he wrote. "You’re free to loot and burn that house."

The post has since been deleted, but that hasn't stopped the New Hampshire Department of Justice from launching an investigation into his advocacy of violence against political opponents.

Specifically, the New Hampshire DOJ is probing whether Spillane violated the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act, which states that "all persons have the right to engage in lawful activities and to exercise and enjoy the rights secured by the United States and New Hampshire Constitutions and the laws of the United States and New Hampshire without being subject to actual or threatened physical force or violence against them."

This isn't Spillane's first run-in with law enforcement, as he was found guilty in 2010 of driving while intoxicated and was then arrested in 2017 again on a drunk driving charge.

Although he was found not guilty of the 2017 DWI charge, he was found guilty of open container and yellow line violations.