Far-right influencer Jake Lang speaks in front of Gracie Mansion, New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s official residence, in New York (Photo by Leonardo MUNOZ / AFP via Getty Images)
LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images
Facing a terroristic threat charge, infamous right-wing activist Jake Lang has been banned from Texas until his trial begins—a condition some legal experts say could be an abnormal first in the Lone Star State.
Ahead of trial, defendants are often prohibited from contacting alleged victims, entering certain locations or leaving the state altogether. But being barred from an entire state is another matter.
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“The normal restriction is that you are not allowed to leave the state,” said Tom Hogan, an Assistant Professor of Law at South Texas College of Law Houston. “I’m just not aware of anybody saying that you’re not allowed to be in the entire state of Texas,” Hogan told Chron.
Lang was arrested earlier this month after authorities said he threatened to kill controversial murder defendant Karmelo Anthony during a social media livestream while Anthony’s trial was underway.
The arrest landed Lang in the Collin County jail for approximately two weeks before he was released on a $250,000 bond and ordered to wear an ankle monitor.
“I am going to get some barbecue, and then I am going to get on a plane because I am now the first man in American history to be kicked out of the state of Texas for my political ideologies,” Lang told reporters as he walked out of jail.
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Legal experts say geographic restrictions are not unheard of in criminal cases. Judges often order defendants to avoid alleged victims, witnesses, homes, schools, workplaces or certain public spaces.
Pardoned U.S. Capitol rioter Jake Lang holds a sign that reads White Lives Matter with a photo of Austin Metcalf as a supporter of Karmelo Anthony (right) yells back outside of the Collin County Courthouse. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images)
The Dallas Morning News/Hearst N/The Dallas Morning News via Gett
A statewide ban, however, is far more extraordinary—particularly in a state spanning more than 268,000 square miles.
“That is fairly extreme,” said Hogan. “Telling him that he’s not allowed in all of Texas because he allegedly made a threat to someone who is locked up is something that the appeals courts would have difficulty with.”
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The bond conditions come from Judge John Roach of the 269th Judicial Court, the same judge who presided over Anthony’s murder trial.
While Sandra Guerra Thompson, professor at the University of Houston Law Center, sees the case as “unusual,” it is not entirely “out of line” on Judge Roach’s part, she told Chron.
“Judges have really broad discretion with regard to pretrial conditions,” Thompson explained. She guesses that the court likely viewed Lang’s removal from Texas as a way to reduce potential risks to witnesses and other individuals involved in the case.
“If the judge has reasons to believe that this is necessary and appropriate to protect witnesses or to just ensure public safety for whatever reason, then the judge is within their rights to do that,” said Thompson regarding the ban.
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During Anthony’s trial, Lang was seen yelling at supporters of Anthony protesting outside of the courthouse, shouting, “You guys are complicit in the murder of white people…Karmelo Anthony should be swinging from a tree!”
🚨 BREAKING:
Protect White Americans (PWA) will be holding a PRESS CONFERENCE at Austin Metcalf TEXAS Courthouse tonight at 6pm!!
This cold blooded MURDERER will receive GUILTY VERDICT tonight!!! 🙏
DEATH PENALTY via PUBLIC HANGING FOR KARMELO ANTHONY!!!!
NOTHING LESS 😡 pic.twitter.com/3czDLKaAjY
— Jake Lang – January 6 Political Prisoner 🇺🇸 (@JakeLang) June 9, 2026
The case drew widespread attention as a racial flashpoint, as Anthony, a Black teenager, was charged with the fatal stabbing of Austin Metcalf, his white classmate at a Frisco track meet last year.
Mugshot photo of Jake Lang, who was arrested on June 2, 2026 on terroristic threat felony charge in Frisco, Texas. Photo: Jake Lang, X
Jake Lang
It is the type of cultural debate Lang has built a reputation around. The Jan. 6 defendant is known to frequently insert himself into politically charged cases, including recent appearances at Frisco City Council to protest against the “Islamification of Texas.”
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It is unclear at this time when Lang will be allowed back into Texas to attend his court hearing.