It differs State to State.
If, it's against a Federal Employee the FBI investigates.


Death Threat Law & Legal Definition

Under state criminal codes, which vary by state, it is an offense to knowingly utter or convey a threat to cause death or bodily harm to any person. It is also an offense to threaten to burn, destroy or damage property or threaten to kill, poison or injure an animal or bird that belongs to a person.
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ABC World News Reports Threat at its Tucson Town Hall, Omits it Was Made to a Tea Partier

Sunday, January 16th, 2011 by jos
As NewsBusters previously reported, a survivor of last week's Tucson shootings issued a death threat to a Tea Party member Saturday in the middle of a taping for a town hall meeting to be aired on ABC's “This Week.” For some reason, ABC World News Saturday in its report about the gathering chose to omit the seriousness of the threat and that it was made to a Tea Partier

Let's get back to this useful debate,

When people in a leadership position do it it is a bad example of leadership. They above anyone else should know better. It is their job to influence and exhibit leadership through words and actions.

When a regular citizen does it it is far less inciting of violence and doesn't reach near as many people who might actually act on it. Most of the time it is just words, blowing off steam, but our leaders and media personalities should know better and be held accountable. I don't care who they are or who they represent.

Don't you agree with that opinion?

Please don't ignore this healthy debate that me and MightyMoe were having last night.

We proved a debate could be had here without name calling and insults.
Let's keep it up.

Hindsight is a valuable learning tool.

Thanks for your insightful input.

This VICTIM is showing legitimate anger. Perhaps he is sufferring from PTSD, but what is Palins and companies defence.
This citizen/victim you think should be arressted, why do you think the Politicians and media personalities who committed the same crimes should

This VICTIM is showing legitimate understandable anger. Perhaps he is suffering from PTSD, but what is Palins and companies defense.
This citizen/victim you think should be arrested, why do you think the Politicians and media personalities who committed the same crimes should go free?

Fanta have you considered the flip side...
Our politicians and indeed the media have been the same way for decades.

If you look as far back as JFK you will see the truth of that.

However by lending credance to the assumption that such political and media wrangling is a possible 'excuse' for violent action one makes it possible for a persone that would normally act within what the community allows to feel that they will receive an 'excuse'.

in shorter words...

People that have anger issues will feel that they can 'get away' with actions they would not have thought possible a week ago.

Politicians and media didn't call for assassinations and violence in the days of JFK.
If they did I'd like to see it.
I can't imagine Walter Cronkite calling for anyone to use violence or assassinate anyone.
I am 50 years old and can't ever remember politicians or the Media acting like this.

Once again,
I don't care who it is. Hell if it's Obama it should be the same.

No one should be above the law. If this is to be the law all should be held accountable.

Don't you agree? This kinda puts free speech in jeopardy though. esp when they arrest a citizen for it.
Words are just words unless you act on them. Right?


Why should citizens be held to different laws than politicians and the Media?
They should not and anyone who says they do, or denying that it's happening is the ones using excuses.

Beg to differ... I remember (as some in the media might hope we don't) the times leading up to the assasination of MLK, JFK and RFK... My dad was quick to point out some of the hate filled things that were said on the radio and in the 'political' meetings as they were held in that time.

We even walked out of some of those meetings because my dad felt that Mr. King was telling a truth and the meetings angered him.

What been said in this time on media and by some of our politicians pales in comparision.

this is a witch hunt as far as I am concerned.

Every generation seems to have one. (a witch hunt). In olden times they actually burned the hunted (and called them witches).

Hitler put them in ovens (and called them jews).

McCarthy threw them in jail (and called them communists).

This generation simply (as of yet) calls them Tea Partys and threatens to limit their rights.

Lowest common denominator is economic control.

Propaganda is the weapon.

Perhaps, and I'm not saying what you say is true, but perhaps the common denominator is racism.

I know MLK received many death threats but I can not remember one of them coming from the Media or a Politician.
You'll have to show me different.

PS
Calling someone a communist is not a death threat.

Just provide me with a link AB and I'll read it. If you're right I will gladly admit that you're right.

Sound fair to you?

There is no link to my memories that you can acccess.

But I reckon someone out there has compilied a list of all the hate during that time.

It did not all come from one side I can tell you.

I lived in california. I saw hatred for race from all sides. I saw hatred of the hippy. Hatred of the 'MAN'. Hatred of the soldier. Hatred of the peacenik. Hatred of the Dems by the Repubs. Hatred of the Repubs by the Dems. Hatred of the commie.

I am right. I know it beyond a shadow of a doubt. What is happening now is no different. The only differance in this age is the proflieration of media (therefore the story travels farther - quicker).

I had thought you to be old enough to know this. I guess time (and people deliberately changing history) have made this a fading memory in the mind of america.

Do you read my posts AB?

I am 50, and I am from the South. Believe me I remember the racism as you could only remember if you were here during those days.
I guess its your memories against mine, and the evident proof, since you won't provide a link, and I say there has never been open threats of violence and assasinations coming from public officials and the Media as exist today.

The south was not the only place where violence was used to settle differences then.

Simple look at history of California history will put that to its proper place in carefully worded spin.

Malcom X. Tate-Labianca.Black Panthers.Hells Angels.KKK (yep they were there to).

My parents joined an organization that though racism needed to be erradicated...

As a white boy can you imagine what I went through. Anglos hated me for my beliefs. Blacks hated me because I was white. My father taught me to love them both.

One is either part of the solution or part of the problem.

Forward is a direction that means differing things to differing people.

For me forward is up.

I am 40 and born and raised until I was 8 in the south and moved to the north.......and I never heard as many epitaphs of racism as I did from my father....his favorite being jigaboo.....anyways at eight I was pertrified of the african american and thought they were like ice cream and melt on me if I touched them......then I moved north into the country and found that the african american was the kindest to me in an area that strangers were uncommon.....and unaccepted by many......I learned that my father was wrong and that many were talented.......in the south I am still afraid to walk down avenue d from all stories when I was younger.....and there are no more piggly wiggly's here anymore eother which is really sad because I liked the coloring books they gave out to the kids when I was younger......

Anyways point is my father isn't allowed to use those words in front of my children and my children do not see one person as lesser or one person as better because I do not allow it.......no matter the race

A person can become angry and still be civil and I believe the people requiring it from their leaders would make a difference.

Calling them on it in letters to them would be an excellent idea.

Wow... Reckon that would take a while.

How many congresspersons and senators are there?

Plus of course the President. Using your own arguments he also is guilty of such 'language'...

Oh and then you have all the lead-in speakers at just about every political rally...

The state level legislators (they ALL ran some seriously twisted ad's).

Some sheriffs and other elected officials...

The people that make those ugly political ad's.

The people that PAY for those ugly political ad's.

Opinion merchants from every major news show, magazines(even playboy, penthouse, etc.. ran nasty ads), blogsters, pundits, political experts... ad infintium.

People that cut and pasted those same articles, opinions, nastyness and what not to social sites net-wide.

The man in the bar that saw some ad and agreed with it loudly (jeez - there is a nut job at the corner table - he might have been set off cause the guy agreed with the ad).

..........

From what you have posted I am left thinking that what you appear to want is for those that have conservative values to shut up, sit down, and let unacceptable (and quite expensive) changes be made.

Please correct me if I am wrong.