Internet blogger Harold “Hal” Turner’s attorney said today that Turner’s background as an FBI informant will be a key part of his defense to charges that he incited violence against two state legislators and a state ethics official. Superior Court Judge David P. Gold on Tuesday authorized Michael A. Orozco, a New Jersey attorney, to represent Turner. Turner did not appear again in court Tuesday because he remains in federal custody without bail in Chicago, where he is accused of threatening three federal judges…
…Orozco said Turner was trained by the FBI as “an agent provocateur.” “Mr. Turner was trained by the FBI,” Orozco said. “He was told where the line was — what he could say.” In his comments on his blog that brought the state and federal charges, Turner did not cross that line, Orozco said. Orozco said Turner worked for the FBI from roughly 2002 to 2007.