LANSING, Mich. (WSYM) — Attorney General Dana Nessel and others are cracking down on threats made to public leaders. She joined the District of Columbia’s Attorney General and law enforcement officials on a call Wednesday.
It comes as violence and protests have erupted around the nation after the presidential election.
Attorney General Nessel did not give any details about the threats that closed legislative offices Monday, only saying that it’s still under investigation. She promised anyone who makes threats will be prosecuted.
The AG says her office has been targeted, too. She says her staff receives hundreds of phone calls and emails each day-oftentimes from out-of-state numbers.
“It’s just nonstop. It’s around the clock. It’s just very disruptive, and many times they are direct threats or they are intimation of threats. The language implies that something bad will happen or it implies some sort of threat of violence,” said AG Nessel.
A law professor from Georgetown University also joined the call. She said while free speech is protected under the First Amendment, threats of violence are not. These kinds of threats are often times felonies under federal law.
