Woman Arrested for Death Threats Against Trump and His Son Barron

President Donald Trump (R) and his son Barron wave as they board Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, N.J., on Aug. 16, 2020. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

An Illinois woman was arrested and charged after she threatened to murder former president Donald Trump and his youngest son Barron.

The complaint against Tracy Marie Fiorenza, 41, charges that “she did knowingly and wilfully make threats to kill or injure the person of another” through an email, violating Title 18, U.S. Code Sections 875 (c). On May 21, 2023, Ms. Fiorenza is alleged to have emailed the headmaster of an educational institution in Palm Beach County, Southern District of Florida, stating that she would “shoot Donald Trump Sr. AND Barron Trump straight in the face at any opportunity I get.”

On June 5, Mr. Fiorenza once again emailed the headmaster, stating that she was “going to slam a bullet in Baron Trump’s head with his father IN SELF DEFENSE!”

On June 14, Ms. Fiorenza gave an interview at the U.S. Secret Service Chicago Field Office where she confirmed that she “intentionally wrote and sent” the emails from her Plainfield, Illinois residence.

The complaint was filed at the U.S. District Court Southern District of Florida on Aug. 9 by John C. McMillan, the Assistant U.S. Attorney.

Ms. Fiorenza was arrested on Monday and presented to the Dirksen Federal Courthouse where the judge said that she would be transferred to Florida where charges against her have been filed.

Ms. Fiorenza was remanded into the custody of U.S. Marshals until Wednesday afternoon when her detention hearing is scheduled. Prosecutors asked for Ms. Fiorenza to be detained prior to her hearing as Barron Trump, whom she threatened, is a minor at 17 years old.

Ms. Fiorenza has been charged with a crime that carries a maximum prison sentence of five years.

According to Newsweek, she was employed as a teacher at the Chicago Public Schools between 2019 and 2020. A suspected social media account checked by the outlet showed several anti-Trump posts.

One post claimed that the Trump family was part of a “Hollywood pedophile/rape ring.” Another insisted that Barron had enrolled in the school using fake test scores. A third post showed a Trump doll hung with a noose.

Attempts Against Trump’s Life

President Trump has faced death threats and attempts at his life multiple times since he ran for the presidency in 2016.

In June 2016, a British citizen, Michael Steven Sandford, was arrested for attempting to seize a firearm from an officer during a Trump rally in Las Vegas. At the time of the incident, he was illegally in the United States on an expired tourist visa.

When questioned by authorities, Mr. Sandford called President Trump a “racist” who “needs to die” and admitted he tried to seize the firearm to “shoot and kill Trump,” according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He was sentenced to a year in prison.

In September 2017, Gregory Lee Leingang from North Dakota attempted to remain in a restricted area, the Andeavor Mandan Refinery in Mandan, after the place was cordoned off ahead of a visit by President Trump.

He stole a forklift in Mandan and used it to enter the motorcade route, with the intent of trying to get the forklift to the limo, flip the vehicle, get to President Trump, and kill him.

Former President Donald Trump leaves the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

However, Mr. Leingang’s plan never came to fruition as he had to dump the machine in a ditch and run away, only to be eventually caught by Mandan officers. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Besides individuals, President Trump has faced death threats from antagonistic nation-states. Iran threatened him over the 2020 killing of the country’s top military commander Qasem Soleimani.

“God willing, we are looking to kill Trump [and] Pompeo … and military commanders who issued the order should be killed,” Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aerospace force, said in February this year.

The former president has also been targeted with envelopes containing ricin, a poison that can kill targets within 36 to 72 hours of exposure.

Threatening Public Officials

The threat against President Trump comes as there has been a rise in such acts against public officials during the past several years.

According to a report (pdf) by the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education (NCITE) Center, there have been 501 threats directed at public officials between 2013 and 2022. On a yearly basis, the number of threats has risen from 38 in 2013 to almost double at 74 in 2022.

“Threats were most commonly made against members of the criminal justice system, from law enforcement officers to judges. Elected officials and those who run or manage elections comprised the second most-targeted category. Educators and healthcare workers also received threats,” the report said.

While 42 percent of threats were directed at law enforcement and the military, 42 percent were aimed at election/elected individuals.

New York saw the highest number of charges at 43; followed by Pennsylvania at 36; Texas at 32; and Florida at 31.

Sixty-nine percent of those who made the threats carried a criminal history. Fifty-five percent of threats were driven by ideological motivation.

The most common method of communicating the threat was by telephone, followed by social media.