Man charged with threatening to kill Fani Willis over Trump prosecution

ARCHIVO – Fani Willis, fiscal de distrito del condado Fulton, participa en una audiencia sobre el caso de la interferencia en las elecciones de Georgia, el viernes 1 de marzo de 2024, en Atlanta. (AP Foto/Alex Slitz, foto compartida, archivo)

CHULA VISTA, Calif. – A Chula Vista man has been indicted for allegedly posting death threats towards Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her election interference prosecution of former President Donald Trump, it was announced Friday.

Marc Shultz, 66, is accused of posting threats in YouTube livestreams, in which he stated among other things that Willis “will be killed like a dog” for prosecuting Trump for allegedly attempting to overturn his 2020 presidential election defeat in Georgia, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.

Prosecutors say the threats were made last Oct. 4 and Oct. 5.

The remark, which came as Trump ramped up his attacks on prosecutors, closely echoed language Trump has used in the past to describe a killing, according to The Guardian.

“He died like a dog,” Trump said in televised remarks from the White House when describing the death of former Islamic State terrorist group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi following a US special forces operation in Syria.

The threats to Willis increased dramatically after the Fulton county district attorney’s office last year charged Trump and 18 co-defendants with conspiring to violate state racketeering laws as part of efforts to reverse the former president’s 2020 election defeat.

Shultz made an initial appearance in San Diego federal court on Thursday. He’ll be formally arraigned in Atlanta next month.

“Sending death threats to a public official is a criminal offense that will not be tolerated,” said US Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan in a statement. “Our office will continue to diligently coordinate with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to help protect public officials while performing their duties and who deserve to do so free from threats of harm and intimidation.”

Willis said in a statement issued Friday, “On the same day Senator Bill Cowsert had the audacity to question whether an elected African American female district attorney deserves protection from death threats, the United States Attorney and the FBI announced another indictment of someone who threatened my life. I thank US Attorney Ryan Buchanan, his staff and the FBI for believing the life of an African American elected official has value and for their diligent efforts in ensuring the safety of myself, my staff, and our families.” (With CNS report)