An Arizona man has been convicted by a jury of threatening to kill or harm House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, federal prosecutors announced in a statement on Friday.
According to the US Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona, 77-year-old Steven Arthur Martis from Bullhead City was convicted on one count of communicating an interstate threat.
On 17 January 2021, the man sent two voicemails to Pelosi's office, with one message threatening, "I'm coming to kill you", and a second one saying, "you're dead". If sentenced, Martis faces up to five years in prison.
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His threats against Pelosi came about a year after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) interviewed Martis about a different message to another member of Congress, warning him the conduct runs counter to the law.
Acting United States Attorney Glenn B. McCormick, for his part, underscored that the Martis case is "an important reminder that, although the First Amendment protects our right to free speech, which is one of our most precious individual rights, the United States Attorney's Office takes threats to kill or harm another individual through a phone call or other form of interstate communication very seriously".
The First Amendment guarantees freedoms concerning religion, expression, assembly, and the right to petition.