Abigail Jo Shry of Alvin, Texas, called the federal courthouse in Washington and left the threatening message — using a racist term for U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan — on Aug. 5, court records show. Investigators traced her phone number and she later admitted to making the threatening call, according to a criminal complaint.
In the call, Shry told the judge, who is overseeing the election conspiracy case against Trump, “You are in our sights, we want to kill you," the documents said. Prosecutors allege Shry also said, “If Trump doesn't get elected in 2024, we are coming to kill you," and she threatened to kill U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat running for mayor of Houston, according to court documents.
A judge earlier this week ordered Shry jailed. Court records show Shry is represented by the Houston public defender’s office, which did not immediately return a message seeking comment on Wednesday.
Trump has publicly assailed Chutkan, a former assistant public defender who was nominated to the bench by President Barack Obama, calling her “highly partisan” and “ VERY BIASED & UNFAIR!” because of her past comments in a separate case overseeing the sentencing of one of the defendants charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Chutkan in a hearing Friday imposed a protective order in the case limiting what evidence handed over by prosecutors the former president and his legal team can publicly disclose. She warned Trump’s lawyers that his defense should be mounted in the courtroom and “not on the internet.”
The ongoing war in Ukraine and the Fed's hawkish stance toward reining in inflation might be causing a frenzy among investors. Craig Erlam, a senior market analyst at foreign exchange OANDA, joined Cheddar News to talk about the current "mixed bag" markets. "It's hard to read too much into it. These are just the market conditions we have right now," he said. "Ultimately we're a little directionless at times overall, but these intraday moves are causing a lot of volatility this week."
Catching you up on what you need to know on April 29, 2022, with President Biden asking Congress for a $33 billion aid package for Ukraine, a shrinking GDP potentially leading to a recession, Beijing banning weddings and funerals while closings schools amid COVID, and more.
Buying a new home is tough right now; but for first-time buyers, it's an especially challenging time, with obstacles like rising mortgage rates and record-breaking home prices. The housing market is not expected to get much friendlier, as mortgage rates are expected to continue to climb as the Federal Reserve proceeds with its plans for rate hikes in an effort to stifle inflation. Jonathan Miller, President and CEO of real estate appraiser Miller Samuel, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Tyler Moran, former senior adviser to President Biden on migration, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the recent controversy around the administration's decision to end the use of Title 42, a public health order allowing the U.S. to expel migrants without going through the asylum process.
Christian Heyne, vice president of policy at the gun safety group Brady, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss President Biden's executive action on so-called "ghost guns," and to reflect on the Brooklyn subway shooting.
Jasmine Burney-Clark, founder of Equal Ground Education Fund and Action Fund, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the redistricting process in Florida, and how the state's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis proposed a map reducing the power of Black Floridians.
Ryan Thoreson, an LGBT rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss claims of grooming made by Republican politicians during efforts to pass so-called 'Don't Say Gay' bills.
Zachary Petrizzo, media reporter at The Daily Beast, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss former President Trump's endorsement of Dr. Oz in the U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania, and why some parts of the MAGA base are unhappy about it.
Larry Sharpe, libertarian candidate for New York governor, joins Cheddar Politics to talk about the issues motivating his campaign. The discusses his endorsement from the progressive Forward party founded by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, and changes that can be made to voting systems.
