You may want to think twice before sending that angry or threatening text. Penalties for terroristic threats vary from 12 months of jail to 5 years prison time.
By: Austin Nelson, Criminal Defense Attorney at Law Office of Austin Nelson, P.C.
The crime of terroristic threats covers a wide range of conduct.
O.C.G.A. § 16-11-37 provides that a person commits the offense of terroristic threats when he or she threatens to:
a. commit any crime of violence;
b. release any hazardous substance; or
c. burn or damage property.
Like all criminal charges, the crime requires one of the above acts combined with a specific mens rea (Latin for “guilty mind”).
The threat can be done in person or by electronic means such as phone, text, or internet, but it must be done:
a. with the purpose of terrorizing another;
b. with the purpose of causing the evacuation of a building, place of assembly, or facility of public transportation;
c. with the purpose of causing serious public inconvenience; or
d. in reckless disregard of the risk of causing the terror, evacuation, or inconvenience described in subparagraph (a), (b), or (c).
Simply put, intent matters. The purpose behind the threat is what separates constitutionally protected free speech and criminal.
But the final subsection (d) is the most concerning. While a person may not purposely be trying to terrorize or cause an evacuation or serious inconvenience to the public, they still may be charged and convicted of terrorizing threats if a jury believes that saying the threat was reckless disregard that this would be the result.
In other words, the specific wording of the threat and context in which it was communicated matter as well, as these would go to whether or not there was a risk of any of these above scenarios occurring.
Proof of these statements often takes the form of witness testimony – the law prohibits conviction for terroristic threats if the testimony of the “threatened” party is not corroborated in any other way.
The penalties for terroristic threats depends on the type of threat. Usually, this crime is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months jail. if the threat is a death threat, it is punishable as a felony with the potential for up to 5 years of prison, a $1,000 fine or both
Terroristic threats is often charged alongside other offenses. Learn how Austin defends violent crime charges in Cobb County.
