MINNEAPOLIS – Robert Phillip Ivers, 72, has been charged with threatening to assault and murder a federal judge, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. Ivers was previously convicted federally of threatening to kill a federal judge.
"At a time when Minnesota is reeling from acts of violence, the last thing we need is someone spreading fear into our churches, libraries, and courts," said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. "Ivers’s threats are bone-chilling. After the past few months, we are not taking chances. When someone threatens our community, we believe them, and we will act swiftly to protect Minnesotans," he added.
According to the complaint, on September 3, 2025, law enforcement responded to the Wayzata Library in Wayzata, Minnesota, based on a report of a man printing off copies of a manifesto entitled, "How to Kill a Federal Judge." This man was Robert Ivers. Law enforcement learned that Ivers showed the manifesto to library staff, including a page that talked about killing children and had a picture of a gun on it.
Ivers also gave library staff a three-page flyer advertising his manifesto before he left the library. The flyer stated that the manifesto "is designed to teach extremists on how to plan, train, hunt, stalk, and kill anyone, including judges, their family members, politicians, and more!" It also advertised that "the harsh reality is that judges are going to die."
In investigating the case, law enforcement learned that, on August 28, 2025, Ivers had been reported for concerning behavior at an Episcopal church in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Ivers attended multiple services and told church members that he planned to attend upcoming church events, including a family picnic and potluck, a blessing of children going back to school with state legislators in attendance, and an annual baptism service.
Church staff searched Ivers online and discovered his history included past threats of violence, a felony conviction, and racist commentary. Church staff then contacted law enforcement. On the evening of September 3, 2025, the Wayzata Police Department located Ivers and arrested him. During his transport, Ivers claimed that he was having a heart attack. Law enforcement transferred Ivers to the hospital from the jail. Ivers was subsequently released from the hospital later that night.
Law enforcement searched Ivers’s vehicle and found, among other things: a photo of the former Pope with crosshairs centered on his head, twenty copies of a spiral-bound printed book titled "How to Kill a Federal Judge" by Robert Ivers, multiple copies of flyers advertising the contents of the book, lists of federal judges, a copy of the Anarchist Cookbook, a white foam box containing a toy replica firearm, a box of Co2 cartridges, and a container of pellets, and a box of fireworks.
On September 5, 2025, Wayzata Police Department re-arrested Ivers. Following his arrest, Ivers was interviewed. Ivers admitted to showing a copy of his manifesto to library staff. Law enforcement asked Ivers if he thought his book would have scared anybody. In response, Ivers shouted: "It was supposed to!"
Related Federal Cases
- 72-Year-Old Charged with Threatening to Assassinate Federal Judge · Minnesota
- Minnesota 1949: Murder Rates Soar Amid Post-War Crime Surge · Minnesota
- Robert Stoddard Charged with Shank Assault, Pennsylvania, 2016 · Washington
- Kelton Snyder, Conspiracy to Murder a Witness, Decatur IL, 2015 · Washington
- Lajuan Fitzpatrick, Narcotics Trafficking Murder, IL 2023 · Indiana
Key Facts
- State: Minnesota
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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