A California man has been sentenced to 11 months in prison for leaving threatening voicemails to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the Justice Department announced on Wednesday.
David Allen Carrier, 44, pleaded guilty to two counts of making threats against a federal official in December after a grand jury had indicted him three months earlier.
Carrier, of Concord, threatened to assault Pelosi in a Jan. 21, 2021, voicemail which came 15 days after the riot on the U.S. Capitol building, the Justice Department said, citing court documents.
Seventeen months later, on June 30, 2022, Carrier called the Department of Homeland Security hotline and left a voicemail message threatening to assault Mayorkas.
In pleading guilty to the charges, Carrier acknowledged that he acted with the intent to interfere with Pelosi and Mayorkas’ respective official duties.
"Participating in the public political conversation is an important right for all citizens," U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey said.
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"Nevertheless, threatening our public servants is not protected by the First Amendment and corrodes our ability to engage in peaceful and important public discourse. This office will not tolerate behavior that crosses the line to criminal threats."
In addition to the prison term, Carrier was ordered to serve three years of supervised release to begin after his prison term is completed.
Carrier was also ordered to stay away and have no contact with Pelosi and Secretary Mayorkas, as well as to attend mental health and substance abuse treatment while on supervised release, among other conditions.
The National Security and Cybercrime Section prosecuted the case following an investigation by the FBI and the Secret Service.
"Violent threats targeting elected officials also threaten our democratic system," FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Tripp said.
"Today's sentence demonstrates that anyone who sends politically motivated threats of violence to government officials will be investigated by the FBI and held accountable."
