Brandon Guffey
Appearances
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
Thank you, Senator Cruz. July 27th, 2022, I lost my oldest son Gavin Guffey to suicide. We quickly found out that he was being extorted online that someone pretending to be a young female at another college requested images to be shared back and forth. And as soon as he shared those images, he took his life.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
It was an hour and 40 minutes from the time that he was contacted until the time that he took his life. At that time, I had never heard of the crime of sextortion. I was always a more liberty-minded politician, even though I hate to say that word. And I wanted freedom as much as possible.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
But as I started looking into this, I started to see that big tech operates, and they are the equivalent of big tobacco of today's generation. The account that targeted my son, that caused him to take his life, was taken down online once Homeland Security reached out. However, they left the additional accounts up.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
If I send a friend request, I can choose remove this account and any other accounts associated. Yet they left these other accounts up, and those other accounts began to extort my 14-year-old cousin, my 16-year-old son who had just lost his brother, and myself as well, going as far as sending a message saying, did I tell you that your son begged for his life?
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
From that day forward, I have made it my life's mission, politics or not, to fight to protect children online.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
since december of 2022 whenever i took office within four months we were able to pass gavin's law in south carolina which criminalized digital sextortion and the first person that we were able to convict under gavin's law was actually under an ai photograph i have helped thousands of children since then.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
Matter of fact, I've dealt with three within the past 48 hours of families that are reaching out, that are being extorted in these situations. I've worked with groups such as Nkosi and NCMEC here on the Hill. I have showed up with parents. And unfortunately, the amount of parents that are losing children are growing daily. Since my son took his life,
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
There's been 40 other teens that are public about this. I can tell you there's more than a dozen that I know of that just do not feel comfortable sharing their stories. But I'm witnessing teens constantly take their life. And as you said, Senator Cruz, trying to get an image down.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
Now, granted, I'm just a state representative, but I have a little bit more pull than the average citizen, and I'm able to get some of these taken down occasionally. But that's generally not the case. And with something such as Take It Down, it would allow families to be able to have those images taken down and to have the voice that my son did not have.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
There was no recourse of being able to know to be able to get these images down. And in his mind, no one had his back. And this wasn't talked about. So since then, It's been my mission to speak up, scream it from the mountaintops on how we have to hold big tech accountable and take it down does that.
Verdict with Ted Cruz
Biden Released 100 Potential Terrorist Illegal Aliens in a Single Year plus POTUS & First Lady Support my Take It Down Act
So for everyone involved, I really thank you for your involvement and urge for passage within the house.