(USNewsMag.com) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Denver Police Department (DPD) have launched a coordinated investigation into various death threats made against the Colorado Supreme Court justices who made the call to remove former President Donald Trump from the state’s ballots in 2024.
According to a DPD spokesperson, law enforcement is “currently investigating incidents” aimed at the four justices. The DPD said they will continue cooperating with “local, state, and federal” partners to make sure “any reports of threats or harassment” are thoroughly investigated.
Citing “open investigations” and concerns for “safety and privacy,” the DPD spokesperson did not provide any further details of the ongoing probes, although they confirmed “extra patrols” would be deployed “around the justice’s residences” and “additional safety support” is available upon request.
The spokesperson also confirmed that the threats came following the controversial decision by the justices on Dec. 19 to exclude Trump from Colorado’s ballot for the 2024 presidential election. The ruling determined that Trump’s actions surrounding the riot on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2021, fall under the insurrection clause of the 14 Amendment to the US Constitution.
Advance Democracy, a nonpartisan nonprofit research organization, found in their analysis that there was “significant violent rhetoric” from Trump supporters online directed at the justices and the Democratic Party during the aftermath of the decision. The names of the four Colorado justices who made the decision to disqualify the former president appeared in many of the threatening posts on online forums.
Daniel J. Jones, the president of Advance Democracy, told reporters that they “are seeing significant violent language and threats” directed toward the justices “and others perceived to be behind” the Colorado Supreme Court ruling. Some of the concerning posts called for the disclosure of personal information about the justices and went as far as calling for physical violence with deadly weapons, hangings, or explosives.
In a statement, the FBI said they’re “vigorously” pursuing “investigations of any threat or use of violence” by those who use “extremist views to justify” such actions.
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