David Hannon, 67, of Sarasota, entered the plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher P. Tuite to a charge of threatening a federal official.
A news release from the Justice Department said Hannon sent an email to Omar on July 16, 2019, after a televised news conference held by Omar and three other members of Congress.
The email, in part, asked Omar if she was prepared “to die for Islam” and said Hannon was going to shoot her in the head, according to Tuesday’s news release.
“Threatening to kill our elected officials, especially because of their race, ethnicity or religious beliefs, is offensive to our nation’s fundamental values,” Kristen Clarke, an assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said in a prepared statement.
“The Justice Department will not hesitate to prosecute individuals who violate federal laws that prohibit violent, hate-motivated threats. All elected officials, regardless of their background, should be able to represent their communities and serve the public free from hate-motivated threats and violence.”
This article appears in Apr 14-20, 2022.