Authorities in Georgia said Thursday they're investigating threats targeting members of the grand jury that indicted former President Donald Trump and 18 of his allies.
Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat's office said investigators are working to trace the origin of the threats after the names of grand jury members and other personal information were posted online. The sheriff's office said other local, state and federal law enforcement agencies were assisting.
“We take this matter very seriously and are coordinating with our law enforcement partners to respond quickly to any credible threat and to ensure the safety of those individuals who carried out their civic duty,” the sheriff's office said in a statement.
A Fulton County grand jury returned a 41-count indictment Monday charging Trump and 18 others with illegally conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia.
Though the grand jury proceedings were secret, the unredacted names of the grand jury members were included in the indictment. That's standard practice in Georgia, in part because it gives criminal defendants a chance to challenge the composition of the grand jury. The indictment itself is a public record.
The American Bar Association condemned any threats as well as the sharing of other personal information about the grand jurors online.
“The civic-minded members of the Georgia grand jury performed their duty to support our democracy,” the association's statement said. “It is unconscionable that their lives should be upended and safety threatened for being good citizens.”
A woman in Texas has been charged with making an Aug. 5 phone call threatening to kill U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing the federal case against Trump in Washington. And FBI agents on Aug. 9 killed an armed Utah man facing arrest on charges of making violent threats against President Joe Biden and law enforcement officials involved in prosecuting Trump.
According to new research by Twitter, the social media platform algorithm amplifies content from the "political right" rather than those on the left. The company says this data comes as the platform has been taking the time to research the implications of its algorithm and whether or not it has caused any "unknown harm". President and CEO of Media Matters for America Angelo Carusone, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Jill and Carlo cover the latest developments in the Alec Baldwin prop gun shooting, when vaccines for kids as young as 5 should be approved, new reporting on Facebook and more.
Dana Sussman, deputy executive director at the National Advocates for Pregnant Women, joined Cheddar News to talk about Brittney Poolaw, who was sentenced to four years in state prison for a miscarriage she suffered last year.
Despite Joe Biden having won the state of Virginia in 2021 by 10 points, the race between his fellow Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Donald Trump-endorsed Republican Glenn Youngkin has tightened considerably down to the wire. Dave Levinthal, the deputy Washington bureau chief for Insider, joined Cheddar to give his analysis of the bellwether gubernatorial race in the year before the midterm elections.
Laura Vozzella, local reporter for the Washington Post, joins Cheddar News to discuss the razor-thin edge Democrat Terry McAuliffe has over Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin in the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election.
A judge has temporarily put on hold United Airlines' unpaid leave policy for workers who claimed either religious or medical exemptions from COVID vaccinations. Six workers filed a suit against the company, calling the policy unreasonable.
President Joe Biden took to the podium to discuss the deal that will keep the Port of Los Angeles open for business 24 hours a day, seven days a week as the nation grapples with supply chain issues.
Members of the House returned to Washington, DC, on Tuesday to vote on a short-term increase of the U.S. debt limit. The temporary measure will allow the federal government to pay its bills until December 3.
