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PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 10:58 pm
by seamusTX
In the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, area today, a man was indicted in federal court for allegedly using a Facebook page to threaten the workplace he had recently been fired from, his estranged wife, police, and schools.

Among his literary efforts was
"That's it, I've had about enough / I'm checking out and making a name for myself / Enough elementary schools in a ten mile radius / To initiate the most heinous school shooting ever imagined / And hell hath no fury like a crazy man in a Kindergarten class
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethleh ... y_thr.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Genius.

- Jim

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 9:13 am
by Keith B
His threats can be considered cyber harassment, but more likely will fall under terroristic threats, which carries a much more harsh penalty and will more than likely end up causing this bozo to have time to think about it in prison vs. a chance for probation.

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 10:16 am
by seamusTX
The guy was indicted on a federal charge. That means he was charged with a felony and the grand jury found probable cause.

None of the news stories that I could find says exactly what statute he was charged under. Probably it is something related to terrorism.

Federal prosecutors don't go for an indictment until they are very confident of getting a conviction or plea bargain. They have a conviction rate over 90%.

You won't find a more enthusiastic proponent of free speech than me, but threatening to commit the most heinous school massacre in history is not legitimate free speech.

He does, however, get an A for spelling heinous correctly. ;-) Maybe half of people who try to write or say this word think it's "heenious."

- Jim

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 10:30 am
by Purplehood
seamusTX wrote:The guy was indicted on a federal charge. That means he was charged with a felony and the grand jury found probable cause.

None of the news stories that I could find says exactly what statute he was charged under. Probably it is something related to terrorism.

Federal prosecutors don't go for an indictment until they are very confident of getting a conviction or plea bargain. They have a conviction rate over 90%.

You won't find a more enthusiastic proponent of free speech than me, but threatening to commit the most heinous school massacre in history is not legitimate free speech.

He does, however, get an A for spelling heinous correctly. ;-) Maybe half of people who try to write or say this word think it's "heenious."

- Jim
That is truly highness of them to do.

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 7:01 pm
by WildBill
Purplehood wrote:
seamusTX wrote:The guy was indicted on a federal charge. That means he was charged with a felony and the grand jury found probable cause.

None of the news stories that I could find says exactly what statute he was charged under. Probably it is something related to terrorism.

Federal prosecutors don't go for an indictment until they are very confident of getting a conviction or plea bargain. They have a conviction rate over 90%.

You won't find a more enthusiastic proponent of free speech than me, but threatening to commit the most heinous school massacre in history is not legitimate free speech.

He does, however, get an A for spelling heinous correctly. ;-) Maybe half of people who try to write or say this word think it's "heenious."

- Jim
That is truly highness of them to do.
Heinous hyenas would heckle this.

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 8:37 am
by E.Marquez
seamusTX wrote:The guy was indicted on a federal charge. That means he was charged with a felony and the grand jury found probable cause.

None of the news stories that I could find says exactly what statute he was charged under.
- Jim
Elonis was charged with violating interstate communication laws.
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethleh ... y_thr.html

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 10:58 am
by seamusTX
I want to know the citation of the U.S. Code.

Most U.S. penal laws begin, "It shall be unlawful for any person to" [do something].

When the offense that is being prosecuted is pure speech or writing, I would like to know exactly what statute allegedly is being violated.

- Jim

Re: PA:Man indicted for threatening Facebook postings

Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 11:56 am
by WildBill
seamusTX wrote:I want to know the citation of the U.S. Code.

Most U.S. penal laws begin, "It shall be unlawful for any person to" [do something].

When the offense that is being prosecuted is pure speech or writing, I would like to know exactly what statute allegedly is being violated. - Jim
United State Code: Title 18, Part I, Chapter 41, Section 875
(c) Whoever transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing any threat to kidnap any person or any threat to injure the person of another, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18/875.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;