A Florida man has pleaded guilty in connection with threatening to kill a Supreme Court justice.
The guilty plea from 43-year-old Neal Brij Sidhwaney of Fernandina Beach stemmed from a call he made to a Supreme Court justice in July, the Justice Department said in a news release Monday.
He faces up to five years in federal prison on one count of transmitting an interstate threat. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
Prosecutors said that Sidhwaney identified himself by name in an expletive-infused voicemail and repeatedly threatened to kill the Supreme Court justice, who is not named in court documents.
Sidhwaney warned that if the justice alerted deputy U.S. Marshals, he would talk to them and “come kill you anyway,” according to court documents, which did not indicate what prompted Sidhwaney to make the threat.
Shit take. Anyone calling in death threats is ethically bankrupt at the very least. What justice is there in murder?
For legal purposes, this is only a joke.
It’s really the only way for a normal person to effect the SC. They are given lifetime appointments, it doesn’t say how long those lifetimes have to be.
Checks and balances, yo.
Many of you here need to grow up.
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The Supreme Courts decision to gut abortion rights has threatened the lives of millions of women. I can see where someone would find justice there.
At some point it becomes self defense.
Maybe guys wife died because she was refused health care.
What? Do you really think that? Where does this end? Can he kill a doctor if his wife died in childbirth due to the doctor’s negligence? Can he kill his local mayor who slashed fire & rescue budgets if his wife dies in a fire? You’re describing revenge, retribution. It’s toxic. It’s insane. Imagine a Trumper making this argument about immigrants or something stupid like that.
Negligence is different than wilfully using the law to deny a woman life saving medical care. Or willfully taking bribes from oil and gas barons while the world burns.
At some point standing up against oppression may require violence. This is a lesson learned from history. Calling self defense revenge, murder, toxic, etc. is exactly what keeps sociopaths feeling safe in their ivory towers while the world burns.
No, it’s really not. People are harmed or even die either way. Who draws the line and where? Should we publicly execute all tobacco execs right now? Is that something you would agree with? What about automotive execs who purposefully lied about emissions standards for profit? They are killing real people. Do you extend your quest for blood to the peons who lied on the tests? The engineers that implemented them? Say a conservative starts bombing clinics that do abortions - are they justified? They see abortion as murder – are they not nobly preventing further murders for the greater good? Tell me who decides and where the line is drawn and you may have your pound of flesh.
Only a sociopath sees violence as necessary for progress in a democracy. If violence becomes necessary it should be mourned, lamented. We are absolutely not there yet. This is extreme and irresponsible rhetoric.
That you can’t understand the difference between intent and negligence told me enough. So, I didn’t bother reading the rest.
Take care and enjoy your moral high ground.
I’m sure it is challenging for you to read more than a few sentences. I provided you with examples of malicious intent and you closed your eyes and plugged your ears. You can do better.
Cool, so now you’re resorting to personal attacks.
Again, enjoy your moral high ground.
Im the last person to approve of SCOTUS. Does that mean I think it’s ever right to call in death threats to like, anyone? Absolutely fucking not. I think it’s truly insane that anyone here is entertaining this. Imagine (well, you don’t really have to) the “other side” doing this shit. It would be reprehensible, just like this bullshit. Hell, for all we know it was a “liberal” justice getting threats and suddenly our opinion on this situation changes? Screw that.
Two wrongs and all that. Eye for an eye… surely there is some simple saying that makes this easy to understand
There’s justice in
murderingremoving by any means dictators like the H guy, Stalin, Putin… What about their main advisors? Then what about the influential people who prop them up? The line is somewhere.One could argue certain judges’/politicians’ responses to COVID, Ukraine funding, women’s healthcare, etc. are already costing far more lives than they are helping/saving.
Cynical leaders tie themselves to the alternate track and see how many bodies they can stack on the main line while daring someone to switch the trolley.
Ah yes Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas. They will surely be remembered amongst the likes of Hitler. How many lives have you cost vs saved? Can you possibly know? Should I call in death threats to anyone I personally judge to have a negative effect on the world? Where do you draw the line? WHO gets to draw the line?
This is insanity
I don’t think we’re there yet either but at the same time, if we were to get to that point, most people (including myself probably) would not recognize it without some painful hindsight. Don’t be like the frog that doesn’t notice the water approaching boiling point.
Besides, I’m not comparing our SC to murderous dictators of the past. I’m just refuting your assertion that threats and/or force are never the right option. When you follow the “what ifs” to their extremes it seems obvious that pacifism is not a universal good.
I think it’s extremely hard to justify violence other than in very clear cases of absolute self-preservation. I think the system needs to change and that the SC is anti-democratic. However, we are excusing/advocating for terrorism here. The aim is a policy change through violence or the threat thereof.
Fair enough - I figured you were drawing comparisons. Regardless in this case, I say, no matter which Justice this maniac was threatening, his actions are wrong. Period.
It’s disheartening to read so many rabid comments from people who I otherwise probably agree with on most things. I usually see that kind of bloodthirstiness from a different kind of person.
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On one hand, you’re absolutely correct. On the other, our founding fathers were very clearly A-OK with murder of “tyrants”…
If the Supreme Court is willing to let women die in hospital parking lots because they don’t like a modern interpretation of the due process clause, and if they’re willing to inexorably beholden us to cultural norms from multiple centuries ago and also allow politicians to systematically eliminate our ability to influence the political process in any meaningful way, then they’ve made very clear themselves that a certain amount of death is inevitable and acceptable. Frankly, it was only a matter of time before desperate citizens followed that train of thought through to its logical conclusion.
You’d be right to think that, what with the whole “Revolutionary War” thing, but it’s interesting in that the whole reason we have impeachment is because of Benjamin Franklin’s opposition to assassination:
https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/173296
“What was the practice before in cases where the chief magistrate rendered himself obnoxious? Why, recourse was had to assassination in which he was not only deprived of his life but of the opportunity of vindicating his character. It would be the best way therefore to provide in the Constitution for the regular punishment of the Executive where his misconduct should deserve it, and for his honorable acquittal when he should be unjustly accused."
Madison followed:
“It is indispensable that some provision be made for defending the community against incapacity, negligence, or perfidy of the chief magistrate. The limitation of the period of his service is not a sufficient security. He might lose his capacity after his appointment. He might pervert his administration into a scheme of peculation or oppression. He might betray his trust to foreign powers.”
Thomas Jefferson: “What country before ever existed a century and half without a rebellion? And what country can preserve it’s liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”
The system is constantly changing. We have the power and tools to effect change, despite the recent backsliding. SCOTUS is corrupt, yes, but we should be trying to change it, not making fucking deranged phone calls threatening people’s lives
I don’t disagree. I also think there are many women across the country whose lives are literally at risk this very moment who might not take much solace in the incremental pace of change. I’m not excusing violence, I’m simply explaining it. It’s wrong, but so is a lot of the bullshit SCOTUS is currently doing, so to many people the idea of “right” and “wrong” simply doesn’t compute the same way as it does with you and me.
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This comment was removed out of an abundance of caution, while I brought it to the other moderators for their thoughts. After a discussion, I agree that I acted in haste, and I truly am sorry.
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I’m against the death penalty for two reasons. One, it’s surprising (and disturbing) how often “solved” cases turn out to be wrong, and convictions are overturned. Finding someone innocent does no good if they’ve already been executed.
Two (and I’m not proud of this one) if someone has done something worthy of the death penalty, I want them to suffer. Dying by quick, painless lethal injection is relatively easy. I want that asshole to spend decades in a cage, and not get an audience for their parting words.
Death row inmates are usually there for quite some time but, yeah, I agree with everything else you said. Capital punishment is just fucked up. Our whole prison system should be more about rehabilitation and protection of society from harmful criminals (that includes violent as well as white collar). Less about retribution. And deterrence pretty much doesn’t work on the worst crimes.