Federal officials to give updates in Arizona election threats criminal cases

Jimmy Jenkins, Arizona Republic
·2 min read

Arizona's top federal prosecutor was scheduled to hold a news conference on Monday afternoon with officials from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Election Threats Task Force and the Phoenix FBI office "to announce recent developments in criminal cases involving threats against the election community in Arizona."

Arizona election officials — both Democrats and Republicans — have faced threats since the 2020 elections.

U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino held a news conference in 2023 after securing the conviction of an Ohio man, Joshua Russell, who made threats against Katie Hobbs.

James Clark of Massachusetts pleaded guilty to making an online threat directed at the Arizona secretary of state's elections office in February 2021.

Frederick Francis Goltz of Texas was sentenced to more than 3 years in prison after pleading guilty to making threats targeting Republican officials, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, Maricopa County Attorney's Office Civil Division Chief Tom Liddy and poll workers.

Mark Rissi of Iowa was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison for threats to Republican County Supervisor Clint Hickman and former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, also a Republican. Rissi left a voicemail on Sept. 27, 2021, saying that he and others were going to "lynch" Hickman for "lying" about the 2020 election results, court documents show.

Recently appointed Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner said one of his priorities was to investigate threats against election workers and ensure the 2024 elections are safe.

At a press conference in February, Skinner said he was seeing more threatening "electronic communication" than ever before in his law enforcement career and pledged to "bring them to justice," even if perpetrators are located outside of Arizona.

"We take all those threats seriously," Skinner said at the time. "They should not be receiving threats."

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Reporters Sasha Hupka and Stacey Barchenger contributed to this article.

Have a news tip? Reach the reporter at jjenkins@arizonarepublic.com or 812-243-5582. Follow him on X @JimmyJenkins. 

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona election threats: Federal officials to give updates on cases