Outrage erupts as Colorado Supreme Court judges get death threats after disqualifying Trump from ballot

DENVER, COLORADO: Members of the Colorado Supreme Court are encountering a flood of aggressive online threats after their recent 4-3 decision that may result in the exclusion of former President Donald Trump from the state's primary ballot.

The decision was grounded in a 14th Amendment lawsuit, claiming that Trump's involvement in an "insurrection" triggered a prohibition on holding office as outlined in the post-Civil War amendment.

Chilling online missives

A particularly disturbing online user stated, "This ends when we kill these f**kers."

Another user posted a grim message, inquiring, "What do you call 7 justices from the Colorado Supreme Court at the bottom of the ocean?" with a chilling response from another, stating, "A good start."

"Kill judges. Behead judges. Roundhouse kick a judge into the concrete," a post on a fringe website reportedly read. "Slam dunk a judge's baby into the trashcan."

The threats, involving means such as hollow-point bullets, rifles, rope, and bombs, were documented by the non-partisan group Advance Democracy, which monitors threats against public figures.

NBC News reported that images and links to these threats were included in their report, exposing the severity of the alarming rhetoric.

Dissenting judges had warned that the ruling could lead to "chaos," and the state Republican Party expressed its intention to shift to a caucus system if Trump is ultimately barred from the ballot.

The Trump campaign is swiftly appealing to the US Supreme Court, which is already deliberating on a distinct criminal case against Trump regarding an alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election.

Concerns over violent rhetoric

Daniel J. Jones, president of Advance Democracy, expressed "significant concern" over the normalization of violent rhetoric, attributing it in part to Trump's statements that seek to delegitimize and politicize court actions.

"We are seeing significant violent language and threats being made against the Colorado justices and others perceived to be behind yesterday’s Colorado Supreme Court ruling," said Jones.

"Trump’s statements, which have sought to delegitimize and politicize the actions of the courts, are serving as a key driver of the violent rhetoric. Political leaders on both sides of the political aisle need to speak out against these calls for violence, and social media platforms need to reassess their role in hosting and promoting this rhetoric," Jones added.

President Trump himself criticized the ruling in a written statement, reposting a quote from his lawyer Alina Habba alleging "corrupt methods" used by rivals.

On his Truth Social platform, Trump shared a post characterizing the majority justices as "Communist thugs, Democrats dressed up as Justices in Colorado."

This surge in online threats against the Colorado justices is part of a broader trend where figures in the judicial system are targeted with threats amid high-stakes legal matters involving Trump.

Judge Tanya Chutkan, presiding over the January 6 case, and the chief clerk of Justice Arthur Engoron have also recently encountered threats.

Social media reactions to online threats

Social media has been inundated with reactions to the threats, with users expressing concern over the alarming nature of the rhetoric.

"Why is a death threat the go-to for MAGAS? They claim to be sane, but then they do s**t like threatening judges on the Colorado Supreme Court for doing their job and showing us who they really are...UNHINGED," one posted on X (formerly Twitter).

"Sane and MAGA are a contradiction in terms!" another added.

"Especially for a party that claims to be pro-life," someone else wrote.

"The reactions are cyclical," a comment read.

"All they do is give empty threats. They're gonna riot and start a civil war if arrested. He's been arrested 3 times now, yet all they do is tweet," another chimed in.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.