Singling out Lee, Haines said he was “either mocking what happened” in Minnesota or suggesting something else entirely. After reading off both of his tweets, she noted that Lee sent them out “within hours of the loss of life and the brutal attack in these people’s homes.”

“This is what happens When Marxists don’t get their way,” Mr. Lee wrote on Sunday on his personal X account, a message accompanied by photographs of the suspect released by law enforcement officials.

The lure of quickly politicizing a violent attack with misinformation and speculation has proven more tempting than being circumspect and sensitive about a tragedy.