Is there something I'm missing?

Why is it illegal to say you're going to kill the president but not illegal to say your gonna kill some average Joe? By the way I feel that it should be illegal to threaten to kill anybody. We may need to protect our freedom of speech but this is going too far IMO. I wonder how many times somebody has threatened to kill another person, then when the cops were alerted of this they basically cant do a damn thing- then the individual turns up dead. All of this for some excessive protection of civil rights. This is bad stuff.


Kris

You can't be serious. You want to make it a crime to say, "I'm gonna to kill you" to someone? What about, "I'll kick your ass", or "You'll be sorry". As if our court system isn't tied up enough... You must be a lawyer.

Just a guess, but I think what you are describing is assault, and already a crime. Maybe a lawyer could clear it up.


Tom D

Doubtful whether a lawyer could clear it up. I tried a whole felony assault case where the other lawyer had absolutely no idea what an assault was and the judge was pretty unclear himself in terms of what an assault was. And this is people looking at the definition in the book. Our State Supreme Court couldn't get a handle on it either. They missed the issue completely in their written opinion when the whole mess went up on appeal. My side was the winner, but for reasons entirely different from the real issue. (My side should have won for other reasons) No, lawyers are unlikely to be able to shed light on this. In general I say you have to read the exact wording of the statute of the jurisdiction you are in. But lawyers can't help much in this regard. :-)


P.S. In my case the jury understood the issue better than the lawyers. But I explained it in terms of Wiley Coyote and the Roadrunner and a big mail order Acme Death Trap. That seemed to work.

It wouldn't be assault but could be evidence of assault, depending on what the speaker intended by making it. Saying "I'm going to kill X" without more isn't a crime or a tort (unless X is the President) but under particular circumstances could be the key fact to prove assault, battery, robbery, intent to murder, conspiracy or other offenses.