Roanoke neo-Nazi activist William A. White must appear before a federal judge to explain two things: why he deleted computer files that were subject to a subpoena, and why he later sent an e-mail laced with obscenities to lawyers involved in the case.

White faces the possibility of being held in contempt of court when he appears before U.S. District Court Judge James Turk on July 18.

In a written opinion Tuesday, magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski certified to Turk a case that began more than a year ago, when White became involved in a housing discrimination case in Virginia Beach.

The civil dispute, which was recently settled, involved claims that landlord John Crockett Henry violated the U.S. Fair Housing Act by using racial slurs against his black tenants and subjecting them to restrictions, such as curfews, that he did not apply to white tenants.

As he is prone to do in race-related matters, White inserted himself into the controversy by sending letters to some of the plaintiffs, calling them n------ and taking issue with their lawsuit against Henry, according to court records.

That led lawyers for the plaintiffs to subpoena White's computer records in an effort to determine whether he had any ties to Henry.

Not long after the subpoenas were issued, more than 50,000 files were deleted from White's personal computer, according to an investigation by a court-appointed computer expert whose findings were included in court records.

"White's intentional deletion of this electronic information was done at a time when he had actual knowledge that the information was being sought," lawyers for the plaintiffs wrote in a motion filed last month asking that White be held in contempt of court.

In his 10-page opinion Tuesday, Urbanski ruled that White should face possible contempt charges not just for deleting the files, but also for an e-mail he later sent to lawyers that was "vile, contumacious and laced with expletives."

The e-mail, attached to Urbanski's opinion, was sent to several people, including Lori Wagner, a U.S. Justice Department lawyer involved in the case; Anthony Troy, a Richmond lawyer and former state attorney general who represented the plaintiffs; and Urbanski's law clerk.

"So go f--- yourselves," White wrote in the e-mail, which went on to level personal insults at the lawyers.

By copying the e-mail to his law clerk, Urbanski wrote, White created a second ground for a contempt citation.

"Plainly, such statements would be contemptuous if uttered in open court," Urbanski wrote. "The court sees no difference in making such statements in an email sent to the court's law clerk as they are plainly disrespectful and constitute an insult to the dignity of the court and an affront to our system of justice."

As leader of the Roanoke-based American National Socialist Workers Party, White has a history of making inflammatory statements on his Web site, which is devoted to the white supremacy movement.

Although White recently filed for bankruptcy, Urbanski ruled that should have no bearing on the contempt case because it is a criminal and not a civil matter. Urbanski also appointed the U.S. Attorney's Office in Roanoke to prosecute White in the upcoming contempt proceedings.

Asked about the possible penalties for criminal contempt, a spokeswoman for the office was unable to provide an immediate response late Tuesday afternoon.

White also is facing a second possible contempt citation in federal court in Norfolk based on comments he made about one of the lawyers involved in the housing case.

White could not be reached for comment Tuesday.