U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Indianapolis Man for Threatening Federal Judge
More Results as U.S. Attorney’s Office Focuses on Protecting Law Enforcement Officials
| U.S. Attorney’s Office August 12, 2013 |
INDIANAPOLIS—Joseph H. Hogsett, the United States Attorney, announced today that federal charges have been filed against Delenore Lowell McTarsney, age 53, of Speedway. According to a criminal complaint unsealed this afternoon, McTarsney is alleged to threatened the life of a federal judge and other local officials in a series of comments posted online.
“We in the law enforcement community are committed to doing all within our power to ensure the safety of all those who work in or around our criminal justice system,” Hogsett said. “Due to the very real threat posed by violence and terrorism, the U.S. Attorney’s Office takes seriously all threats—whether they are made online or offline.”
The criminal complaint alleges that in June 2012, McTarsney began posting hundreds of comments in response to a YouTube video submitted by a local attorney. These comments were generally concerned with the defendant’s belief that he was the victim of a conspiracy that involved the local attorney, as well as a number of other individuals associated with the Indianapolis legal community, including a current federal bankruptcy judge.
These comments were allegedly posted throughout 2012 and continued into early 2013. In January 2013, a number of these comments allegedly began referencing specific acts of violence that the defendant stated he would undertake against those he believed had conspired against him. These threats included descriptions of violent acts against the local attorney, as well as the federal judge, whose home address was included in these online threats.
The defendant’s alleged actions were investigated by agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as representatives of the U.S. Marshals service. On August 10, 2013, the defendant was arrested at his home and charged with making online threats.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sharon M. Jackson, who is prosecuting the case for the government, McTarsney faces up to five years in prison if he is convicted, as well as fines and federally supervised release at the end of his prison term.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.