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Crime type
Violent offences, including threats of violence, where Reddit activity forms part of the case.
This page covers criminal cases about violent offences, including threats of violence, in which Reddit activity forms part of the case and the connection is documented in the record. The category includes matters where a post, a message, or an account was part of the evidence, where a report from Reddit or from another user prompted an investigation, or where a threat was made on the platform itself. It does not include general discussion of violence on Reddit that did not lead to a criminal case.
Cases in this category can differ considerably. A case may concern a communication alleged to be a threat, where the charge turns on what was said, to whom, and with what intent. Another may concern an alleged act of violence in which a post or account is part of the evidence. Entries summarise the charge, the court, the status, and the sentence as the sources state them, and they distinguish between an allegation and an outcome. A charge records only that the state has accused a person, and every person charged is presumed innocent until a conviction or a guilty plea.
This tracker currently lists 6 cases in the violence category. By latest recorded status: 2 charged (alleged, not proven), 4 sentenced. The cases are dated from 2012 to 2026. They were brought in 6 distinct jurisdictions in the United States. The median custodial sentence among the 3 sentenced cases with a recorded prison term (life, non-custodial and unrecorded terms are excluded) is 120 months (about 10.0 years). A status of charged is an accusation, not a finding of guilt.
Terroristic threat; two counts of stalking; unlawful disclosure of intimate visual material
Transmitting threats in interstate commerce (with a hate-crime motivation enhancement at sentencing)
Written threats to kill or conduct a mass shooting (preliminary charge)
Making threats to and intimidating two individuals over social media; illegally possessing a firearm in furtherance of a threat; lying to an FBI agent
Second-degree threatening
Disturbing the orderly conduct of a school; misuse of telephone facilities
For threats made across state lines or over the internet, one federal provision that can apply is 18 U.S.C. § 875(c). It prohibits transmitting in interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing a threat to kidnap any person or a threat to injure the person of another. The Supreme Court has addressed the mental state required. In a 2015 decision it held that a conviction under this statute requires more than a showing that a reasonable person would regard the communication as a threat; that decision did not decide whether recklessness suffices under section 875(c). In a 2023 decision on a state stalking law, the Court held that the First Amendment requires the State to prove the defendant had some subjective understanding of the threatening nature of the statements, and that recklessness is sufficient.
In threat cases the defendant's intent and the context of the communication can be central, and charging documents and court opinions in this area quote the statements at issue and examine the surrounding circumstances. A communication that is offensive but is not a true threat is not on that basis a crime.
Offences of actual violence, such as assault, homicide, and weapons offences, are defined and prosecuted under state law, and federal law has provisions for particular circumstances. State statutes differ in their definitions and penalties. Cases outside the United States follow the law of the prosecuting country. This overview is general background and not legal advice, and it is not a statement about the guilt of any person listed on this page.
A case appears under violence and threats only where there is a documented Reddit nexus. That means the defendant used Reddit to commit, coordinate, advertise, or first draw law-enforcement attention to the offence, or that a Reddit CyberTip, a subpoena response, or a direct report to the police or the FBI produced the charge. The bar is deliberately strict. A widely reported case is excluded unless the Reddit connection is documented in the charging papers, court records, or contemporaneous reporting; simply holding a Reddit account is not enough, and incidents that actually ran through Discord, Telegram, or other platforms are left out rather than stretched to fit.
The status shown on each entry reflects the newest official document the tracker has located, such as an indictment, a plea agreement, a verdict, or a sentencing judgment, and it can lag behind later developments. A status of charged records an accusation only: a charge is not a finding of guilt, and every person charged is presumed innocent unless and until convicted or until they plead guilty. Entries marked charged are therefore labelled as alleged. Victims are never named, and where a victim is described at all the description is limited to what is needed to understand the charge. If an entry is out of date, incomplete, or wrong, use the corrections page to report it.
This category is limited to cases whose central allegation is an act of violence or a threat of violence. Threats combined with the publication of private information are listed under doxxing and threats where publication is the central allegation, hoax emergency reports are listed under swatting, and each case carries a single category, so a matter involving several kinds of conduct is listed on only one hub.
Report an error or request a change on the corrections page. The full tracker, with every category, is on Criminal Cases & Convictions.