Who is Joseph Phelphs? Niviane Petit Phelps who threatened to kill Kamala Harris sent videos to husband in jail
A woman from the Miami area has been charged in federal court for threatening to kill Vice President Kamala Harris in a series of videos she sent to her husband in jail, authorities say. According to a Secret Service complaint, Niviane Petit Phelps, 39, sent her husband five 30-second videos and two photos in February through a service called 'JPay,' which allows imprisoned and non-incarcerated people to share media. Here's everything to know about the Florida-based nurse's husband Joseph Phelps.
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Niviane Petit Phelps, 39, is accused of plotting to kill VP Kamala Harris. She’s a 20-yr nurse at Jackson Hospital but is in federal lockup now, after officials say she made repeated assassination threats in videos made for her husband who is in prison. @wsvn @SecretService pic.twitter.com/mCRHwVDIwH
— Sheldon Fox-7 News (@fox_sheldon) April 17, 2021
Who is Joseph Phelps?
Joseph J Phelps, 44, Niviane Phelps' husband, is currently serving time in a Tallahassee jail after he was found guilty of murdering a shopkeeper and armed robbery in 1996, according to Conan Daily.
Joseph was accused of first-degree murder and armed robbery with a handgun after being accused of fatally shooting Miami grocery store owner Louinas Lucas, 24 years ago. According to Herodia Petit, Niviane's mother, she believed former president Donald Trump would have been able to get her husband out of prison if he had won the 2020 US presidential election instead of Joe Biden. The couple have three children.
Phelps sent five videos to her husband, who is incarcerated at the Wakulla Correctional Institution in Crawfordville, Wakulla County, Florida, using the JPay software. She shared her anger with Biden and Harris in the videos.
“Kamala Harris, you are going to die,” Niviane said in a video which was recorded in her Miami Gardens home on February 13, 2021, as reported by Conan Daily. “Your days are numbered already. Someone paid me $53,000 just to f*** you up and I’m gonna take the, I’m gonna do the job. Okay?”
Other videos sent on the following day included more threats: “If I see you in the street I’m gonna kill your ass Kamala Harris.” Heavy reported that Phelps also said she was going to the gun range until Harris “leaves the chair.” In another video, the woman, who doesn't believe Harris is "actually Black", claimed the vice president would die in 50 days.
Among other photos sent, was one taken on February 20, of herself holding a pistol next to a target with bullet holes. Another photo was of her son holding a pistol and a target. Both these were sent to her husband in jail. Niviane has worked with Jackson Health System since 2001 as a registered practical nurse at Jackson Memorial Medical Center's Ambulatory Care Center West. Following her detention, the hospital placed her on unpaid leave.
Niviane was sent to the Federal Detention Center in Miami by a federal magistrate judge on April 15, 2021. “Based upon my limited knowledge, I do not think my client was a genuine threat to the vice president," defense attorney Scott Saul told the Miami Herald.