Man arrested for bomb threat against Arizona Election Commission

“Your Attorney General has until 9 a.m. Tuesday, February 16 to step down or the explosive device that hit her personal space will detonate,” said a man, James Clarke is said to have sent it to election officials last year using a message submission form. on the Secretary of State’s website, according to the Justice Department.

The indictment claims that in February 2021, Clarke searched online for the addresses of unidentified Arizona election officials and “how to kill” them. Clark also said that in 2013 he searched for terms related to the Boston marathon bombing, which left three dead and more than 200 injured.

He faces three counts: bomb threats, spreading bomb hoaxes, and interstate intimidation. If convicted, Clark faces up to 10 years in prison, according to a Justice Department statement.

Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said Friday, “The threat of unlawful violence puts election officials and workers at risk to ensure the free and fair elections that are the foundation of our democracy. will be lost,” he said.

Clark held his first hearing Friday afternoon in Boston federal court, according to court records.

CNN has reached out to the public defender named to represent Clarke.

The bureau said the case was brought as part of the Election Intimidation Task Force, which was launched last summer to investigate threats against election officials and workers. It is said that it is increasing.

Within weeks of the task force’s launch, its activity appeared to pick up.CNN News from last September Local election officials communicated with the FBI about the threats received.

Election officials say the hostile environment around their jobs has led to burnout, especially after the 2020 election, when President Donald Trump and his allies singled out local officials for false election fraud allegations. said to be connected.

A poll earlier this year found that one in five local election officials surveyed said they were likely to quit their jobs before the 2024 presidential election.More than half of survey respondents Report a safety concern for a colleague in future elections, according to a poll conducted for the liberal-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.

In the past few months alone, the United States has seen some major threats to government officials. Suspected attempted stabbing Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin was elected last week, and election officials are still experiencing the devastating effects of post-election intimidation in 2020.

Former Georgia elections official Wandrea “Shaye” Moss said: testified publicly To the “hateful” and “racist” threats she received after Trump and others promoted false conspiracy theories that she was involved in election fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

“There were a lot of threats, wishing me dead. I was told that I would be in jail with my mother, saying things like, ‘I’m glad it’s 2020, not 1920.'” Jan 6 Committee to investigate the day.

Legislation breaks in meeting Despite some progress made at the state level, measures to address threats to electoral officials have not been successful.

CNN’s Fredreka Schouten contributed to this report.

Source: www.cnn.com