Texas woman arrested after allegedly threatening judge in Mar-a-Lago case
A police officer at the entrance of former President Trump's house at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., on Aug. 9. Photo: Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Authorities have arrested a Texas woman who allegedly threatened the federal judge overseeing former President Trump's special master request in a series of voicemails, according to court documents.
Why it matters: The case, which originated with the FBI's Mar-a-Lago search, has sparked a surge in politically driven threats and violence.
Details: Tiffani Shea Gish allegedly left three voicemails for District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, in early September.
- "Donald Trump has been disqualified long ago, and he's marked for assassination. You're helping him, ma'am," she allegedly said in one of the messages. "He's marked for assassination and so are you. ... Stand the f--k down or get shot."
- "I'm also Trump's hitman, so consider it a bullet to your head from Donald Trump himself," she allegedly said.
- "You f--k up one f--king thing for me ... I'm going to take my ass to f--king Florida, and I'm going to personally throw a bullet to your f--king head in front of your kids," she allegedly said in another message.
Gish had identified herself as Evelyn Salt in the voicemails, but investigators traced her cellphone number and tracked her down in Houston, where she admitted to leaving the messages, according to court documents.
- She faces federal charges of including making threats to influence a federal official and interstate communications with a threat to kidnap or injure.
- The Secret Service was aware of Gish's threats toward Trump, prosecutors say.
The big picture: Threats to federal judges have jumped 400% in the past five years. 2020 saw roughly 4,200 threats against federal judges.
- Many have spoken publicly about the need for bolstered judicial security.