Isolated threats and political violence mark election season across the country

Reports of violent threats and physical violence ahead of Tuesday’s election were not widespread, but several people across the country have been charged with related crimes in recent weeks.

Scripps News found that local, state and federal authorities in several jurisdictions have made arrests for incidents involving election-related intimidation or violence.

Those places include Minnesota, Texas, Michigan, Florida, South Carolina, Arizona and Washington, DC

Shooting threats

In Rochester, Minnesota, Olmsted County prosecutors charged Timothy William Kearney with a felony after accusing him of threatening to shoot people at a polling place on Nov. 3.

According to court documents obtained by Scripps News, an election judge told police she heard Kearney say he was “going to shoot all the Democrats in the building” as he and another man entered the polling place to vote. She also reported that the men “appeared to be intoxicated.”

An officer who investigated the incident at Kearney’s housing complex said the 46-year-old refused to open the door for the officer and “kept yelling at the officer that he was going to kill them.”

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Court records show Kearney later said he “didn’t remember what he said.”

In Arizona, weeks before the election, police arrested Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, on allegations that he shot at a Democratic National Committee office in Tempe. He is also accused of hanging bags of white powder from political signs with razor blades taped along the edges of the signs.

Threats with a machete

In Florida, 18-year-old Caleb Williams is facing an aggravated assault charge after he was accused of intimidating voters with a 23-inch machete at an early election polling place on Oct. 29.

According to an arrest report obtained by Scripps News, a witness said Williams “approached her in an intimidating manner with the machete above his head.” Another witness reported that she was “afraid of getting hurt.”

A police officer who investigated the incident said Williams “admitted to having the machete and holding it with a political sign attached to it.”

Disputes over political hats

Video taken in Orangeburg, South Carolina, appears to show a voter and poll workers getting into an argument over the political hat the voter had to remove from his head.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division confirmed to Scripps News that it is investigating the case, but no charges have been filed at this time.

A similar argument occurred at a polling place in Bexar County, Texas, where a voter placed a political baseball hat on his head in an early election polling place, in violation of the law.

“It got ugly,” Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said.

As an election worker escorted the voter out of the facility, “the suspect appeared to throw an arm back at the victim…The victim appeared to push away from the suspect at that time. The suspect then turned around and threw several punches straight into the victim’s face,” he said.

Jesse Lutzenberger, 63, now faces a felony charge of injuring the employee.

In Orland Park, Illinois, prosecutors charged Daniel Schmidt, 24, with felonies after accusing him of punching an election judge who warned him not to stand in line at the election location.

“Schmidt began yelling profanities and punched the election judge in the face, knocking off his glasses,” Orland Park police said. “At that point, several other customers jumped in and restrained Schmidt until officers arrived.”

Volunteers threatened with car

In St. Clair Shores, Michigan, a group of volunteers working on a Democratic campaign said a man threatened them with his car while they were distributing information in a VFW parking lot.

Jason Lynch Lafond, 55, faces charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and ethnic intimidation after the Macomb County prosecutor said he “allegedly shouted derogatory insults, including insults directed at sexual orientation. He went on to say that if Trump wins, he will ‘exterminate’ people like them.” The prosecutor said Lafond “returned to his vehicle and accelerated toward (the) volunteers, who had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit.”

Federal charges for bomb threat and threatening comments

This month, federal authorities charged two Michigan men with making online election-related threats of violence.

Christopher Clay Pierce, 46, is accused of making violent threats against a political action committee, according to a complaint filed in federal court.

Pierce is accused of writing, “Every day your people contact me with a campaign ad… You (expletive) contact me again. I guarantee I can find all your (expletive) organizers… We will turn you (expletive) inside out.” He is also accused of writing: “Kamala Harris is nothing but a…communist.”

He also described his associates as “trained killers,” according to court records.

Issac Sissel, 25, is accused of using violent screen names like “ShootUpTrumpRally” and “PlanningToKillTrump.” He faces federal charges for threatening violent attacks on conservative Christians after the election.

“I will launch an attack… if Trump wins the election,” he allegedly wrote.

Meanwhile, an election worker in Georgia, Nicholas Wimbish, 25, is facing federal charges for sending a bomb threat to an election inspector and making it appear as if it came from a disgruntled voter.

Capitol scare

On Election Day, United States Capitol Police arrested a man who attempted to enter the Capitol Visitor Center while carrying a flare gun, a lighter and bottles of what appeared to be gasoline.

“Agents searched the man and found what appears to be a manifesto and a letter to Congress. The letter was aimed at the man’s views on the war in the Middle East,” a police spokesperson said.

“If our officers had not stopped this man, (Election Day) would have been a very different story than this,” said U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger.

Manger said he did not believe the incident had anything to do with the election.

The suspect, Austin M. Olson, 27, is charged with possession of a prohibited weapon, unlawful activity and disorderly conduct.

In September, Manager told Scripps News that his officers were and are prepared for threats and violence before, during and after the election.

“There are people who are certainly saying things on social media and making their feelings known that unless the election goes the way they want, they have big plans to somehow disrupt the process of government,” he said. ‘We are aware of this and are certainly making plans for it. “I am confident that we will be able to protect the Capitol and everything that will happen here in the coming months.”

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