A Texas woman is in custody after reportedly making threats against U.S. District court Tanya Chutkan, the federal court in charge of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into the 2020 election fraud case against former President Donald Trump, and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.
According to an affidavit that was submitted in federal court on August 11 and made available by Bloomberg Law on Wednesday, Abigail Jo Shry, of Alvin, Texas, is accused of making a threatening call to Chutkan’s offices in Washington, D.C., on August 5. She is charged with transmitting a threat to injure a person via interstate commerce.
According to the letter, which was signed by Special Agent Joshua Henry with the Federal Protective Service of the Department of Homeland Security, Shry opened the message by saying, “Hey you stupid slave [N-word],”
Rep. Lee, a Texas Democrat running for mayor of Houston, “all Democrats in Washington D.C.,” and “all members of the LGBTQ community” were specifically threatened in the message, according to the affidavit.
Shry allegedly repeated the threats in the message meant for Chutkan by stating: “You are in our sights, we want to murder you. Sheila Jackson Lee should be killed, please. Be careful, b—-, because we’re going to kill you if Trump isn’t elected in 2024. Your family, the public, and you will all be the targets.
When investigators were able to link the message to a phone Shry owned, Homeland Security special agents questioned her on August 8 at her residence in southeast Texas.
The affidavit revealed that Shry admitted to making the threatening call and claimed the phone was hers during the conversation.
They “need to worry” if Lee comes Alvin, she allegedly stated, adding that she had no intentions to travel to Washington, D.C., or Houston in order to carry out the threats.
On Wednesday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sam Sheldon of the Southern District of Texas issued a warrant for Shry’s detention.