Who is Joshua Docter? Michigan man, 21, threatens to gun down Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, charged with terrorism
A 21-year-old man from Holland, Michigan has been charged for allegedly making death threats against President Joe Biden, U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Joshua Docter was arraigned Tuesday, March 16, the state attorney general’s office stated in a press release. He is facing one count of threats of terrorism and one count of using a computer to commit a crime.
The charges against Docter were filed in Ottawa County 58th District Court on Monday and he turned himself on Tuesday and was arraigned before Judge Bradley Knoll. The authorities said Docter is accused of “threatening to shoot and kill the officials and ‘be the catalyst’ for a new American revolution.”
According to the court records, the alleged threats were made in January. “In those posts, Docter stated he would use a gun to shoot and kill the elected officials and would ‘be the catalyst’ for a new American revolution,” the statement said.
READ MORE
Texas 'Marine veteran' threatens to assassinate Trump in a series of online rants, gets 18 months
The case was pursued by the FBI, based on the tips from Docter’s earlier social media posts, that were threatening in nature. The investigation was later carried out by Michigan State Police and handed over to the Michigan Department of Attorney General for prosecution. The investigators have also revealed that they found "bomb-making information" on his phone.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement, “Threatening elected officials is against the law and my office will prosecute those who attempt to intimidate or terrorize our state and federal leaders”. He further added, “I appreciate the thorough investigative work by the FBI and Michigan State Police on this case, and I consider it another excellent example of showcasing the dedication that those working in law enforcement have to protecting the public."
Docter is scheduled to appear for a probable cause conference on April 8 and a preliminary exam on April 15, according to the Department of AG. Each of his charges carries up to 20 years in prison. Meanwhile, Docter’s family seems to be in utter shock on learning about the charges against him. His parents Bret and Erin Docter said, “As a family, we were shocked to learn of the charges against our son. We are in process of evaluating them and working with legal counsel to consider our next steps.”
In February, another man from New Carolina was charged for making threats to kill President Joe Biden and secret service agents through multiple phone calls to the White House. David Kyle Reeves was arrested on February 5.
A federal criminal complaint unsealed in federal court stated, "According to allegations in the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, between January 28 and February 1, 2021, Reeves contacted multiple times the White House switchboard via telephone and made threats against President Biden and others." The court hearing was before Judge David C Keesler.
Reportedly, in one of the calls, he told The Secret Service agent, “to come pick him up, and take him to the White House so he can punch the President in the face, sit in his chair, and stay there until he dies.” Meanwhile, Reeve's attorney Kevin Tate told Keesler that his client "may be taking" psychotropic medication. He hoped Reeves can continue having them while he's in the Mecklenburg jail.”