Man charged over alleged threats to kidnap, kill federal judge in FL

Politically motivated violence and threats of the same have taken center stage in recent months, and federal responses to such incidents continue to make the news.

It was revealed last week that an Illinois man has been arrested on allegations that he threatened to kidnap and kill a federal judge in Florida, with evidence pointing to Judge Aileen Cannon, the judge in Donald Trump's classified documents case, as the intended target, as the New York Post reports.

Arrest made in frightening plot

According to court documents, Eric James Rennert was taken into custody on suspicion of threatening to kidnap and murder a judge as well as family members of said jurist.

While the name of the judge was not mentioned specifically in the filings, the indictment against Rennert, 65, did say that the threats referenced St. Lucie County, the same locale in which Cannon works.

Court papers indicate that threats against the judge were leveled on three occasions of May and July and that the actions were taken in retaliation for the jurist's “performance of official duties.”

During a court appearance in Urbana, Illinois, Rennert was ordered to remain in custody without bail pending transport to Florida for an additional hearing at which his detention status will be discussed once more.

Rennert faces a total of six counts for conduct alleged to have taken place in St. Lucie County, Florida, and as of now, the identity of his legal representative in the case remains undisclosed.

Potential motive identified?

Given the timeline and location of Rennert's threats, speculation has arisen that he targeted Cannon due to her actions in the aforementioned classified documents case against Trump.

It was earlier this year that Cannon dismissed the federal case brought by special counsel Jack Smith, finding that his appointment to his current role by Attorney General Merrick Garland was unconstitutional from its start, and therefore, the charges brought by him against Trump could not stand, as the Associated Press noted at the time.

Liberals in the media responded to the dismissal with outrage, with a legal analyst for NBC and MSNBC going so far as to initiate what was described as an “orchestrated campaign” to pursue an ethics complaint against the judge, as Breitbart reported.

In the intervening weeks, Smith has appealed Cannon's dismissal decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, where the matter now sits.

Rennert is just now beginning his journey through the legal system on charges likely stemming from dissatisfaction with Cannon's ruling, and all eyes will remain on Florida as his case progresses and, hopefully, justice is served.