United States of America v. Steven Lloyd Joiner

Greenville, South Carolina, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with interstate communication of threats.



18 U.S.C. § 875, prohibits transmitting threats in interstate or foreign commerce to injure a person, property, or reputation, or to accuse someone of a crime. This applies to communications crossing state or national borders and carries penalties of fines and imprisonment, with specific subsections defining different types of threats, such as those involving extortion or kidnapping.

What is Prohibited



18 U.S.C. § 875(c): Makes it a federal crime to send a communication in interstate or foreign commerce that threatens to kidnap or injure another person.



18 U.S.C. § 875(d): Makes it a federal crime to send a communication in interstate or foreign commerce that contains a threat to injure the property or reputation of the addressee or another person, or a threat to accuse someone of a crime.

Extortion: This same statute also covers threats made to extort money or other things of value from another person.



Interstate Commerce



The threat must be communicated across state or national borders.



The means of communication, such as the internet or phone, can fulfill the interstate commerce requirement, even if the sender and recipient are both in the same state.



Penalties



Conviction can result in a fine, imprisonment, or both.



Specific penalties vary depending on the subsection violated, with some carrying maximum sentences of up to 20 years.



Example Application



A person posting threats against election officials on a website like Craigslist can be charged under 18 U.S.C. § 8

The defendant is committed to the custody of the Bureau of Prisons for a term of twenty-four (24) months, followed by three (3) years supervised release. $100.00 special assessment due immediately.