‘BE READY FOR WAR’

California Man Who Sent Jan. 6 Threats to 50 Politicians, Journalists Gets 3 Years in Prison

Robert Lemke was handed 36 months in prison after issuing warnings to figures like CNN’s Don Lemon, Brian Stelter, and Sen. Tammy Duckworth.

A California man who sent dozens of threats to politicians and journalists around the Jan. 6 Capitol riot was sentenced to 36 months in prison on Monday, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District said in a press release. Robert Lemke, 36, had previously pleaded guilty to making threatening interstate communications in October. “Frustrated with the result of the 2020 election,” as U.S. Attorney Damian Williams put it, Lemke “sought to quell freedom of expression, to intimidate and instill fear in others by threats of violence.” Lemke targeted figures like CNN’s Brian Stelter and Don Lemon, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and relatives of ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). To Jeffries’ brother, CNN confirmed, Lemke texted, “Your brother is putting your entire family at risk with his lies and other words. We are armed and nearby your house. You had better have a word with him.” Speaking at Lemke’s sentencing on Monday, Stelter said, “Intimidating a person to shut them up is intolerable. The press cannot be truly free if it is subject to threats and harassment.”