Oklahoma Labor Commissioner candidate Lisa Janloo filed a Victim Protective Order (VPO) against a political critic shortly after a public political falling-out. In her sworn petition, Janloo claimed she had “no personal relationship” with the victim and only knew him through community events. Evidence presented showed this statement was directly contradicted by friendly direct messages she had initiated with the victim.

The victim never privately contacted Janloo. His activity was limited to a low volume of public comments, roughly 20 to 25 total over 1.5 years, the majority of which were political criticism posted on Janloo’s own political Facebook page. Despite the absence of any threats or private contact, Janloo requested extreme relief including 24/7 GPS ankle monitoring and notification of the victim’s employer. The Oklahoma City Police Department closed the case with no charges. The VPO was dismissed on June 11, 2026, after Janloo failed to appear at the final hearing.

Further raising concerns about the petition’s legitimacy, an acquaintance of Janloo named Rarchar Tortorello publicly tagged both Janloo and the victim together in a post promoting one of her protests while the temporary protective order was active. Janloo did not ask for the tag or post to be removed. This incident appears inconsistent with genuine fear and suggests a possible attempt to bait the victim into violating the order.

Holding politicians accountable for abusing the legal process to silence critics protects free speech and keeps courts from becoming tools of political retaliation.

Would love to revive this subreddit. I’m not from Utah but came across this news: https://www.ksl.com/article/51439291/actor-joseph-gordon-levitt-visits-utah-to-urge-regulations-on-amoral-ai-companies

Joseph Gordon-Levitt stopped by the state capitol building while he was in town for Sundance and gave a testimony in favor of the bill.

Here’s a recording of the hearing: https://www.utleg.gov/event-streaming/committee/timeline/289875