Trial date set for TN man accused of arson at historic Highlander Center
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A Tennessee man charged with setting fire to an education center that trained civil rights leaders like Rosa Parks and John Lewis in 2019 was indicted on Wednesday. The 27-year-old pleaded not guilty in federal court on Thursday and a trial date has been set for later this year.
Regan Prater faces one count of arson and one count of carrying an explosive device during the commission of the arson in connection to the fire that destroyed the Highlander Research and Education Center in Jefferson County. He remains in federal custody pending trial, which has been scheduled for July 15 in United States District Court in Knoxville.
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If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on the arson charge and an additional 10 years for the explosive charge.
Investigators say Prater used an homemade explosive to firebomb the center's administrative building on March 29, 2019. Officials said the fire destroyed decades of historic documents, speeches, artifacts, and memorabilia from the Civil Rights Era and other social movements.
An affidavit filed in federal court says posts made by Prater in several group chats affiliated with white supremacist groups link him to the Highlander Center fire. Court documents also allege he was inspired by the March 2019 mass shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand. A white-power symbol was found spray-painted on the pavement of a parking lot at the site of the fire, the same symbol that appeared on the Christchurch gunman's rifle.
Prater was previously sentenced to five years in federal prison for setting fire to an adult video store in Manchester, Tennessee in June 2019.
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The Highlander Center was founded in Monteagle in 1932 before moving to New Market in 1971. The nonprofit organization educated many of the Civil Rights Movement's most important figures, including John Lewis and Rosa Parks. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a keynote address for the school's 25th anniversary celebration in 1957.
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