Reno, Nevada — Steven Eugene Ford, 50, was convicted Wednesday of threatening to take the life of the President of the United States, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. The jury’s verdict followed a week-long trial in U.S. District Court, where prosecutors laid out a damning case built on recorded threats and Ford’s own admissions.
Ford, who also goes by the aliases Job Ford and Eleazar Melchizedek, made the threat on or about March 1, 2016, when he called the White House switchboard and told a telephone operator: ‘I’m going to kill that president. I hate him.’ The call was immediately flagged and handed over to the U.S. Secret Service, which launched a full forensic and investigative sweep leading to Ford’s arrest.
During a recorded interview with federal agents, Ford admitted he made the call and repeated his animosity toward the president, according to court documents. Investigators found no direct evidence of a concrete plan or weapon, but prosecutors emphasized that intent and credible threat are enough under 18 U.S.C. § 871, the federal statute criminalizing threats against the president.
U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden didn’t mince words: ‘Threatening to take the life of the nation’s Commander in Chief will be taken seriously and investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.’ The message was clear — even verbal threats against the president trigger a full federal response.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, the primary agency tasked with protecting national leaders and probing threats against them. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian L. Sullivan led the prosecution, painting Ford as a volatile individual whose words crossed the line from free speech into criminal intent.
Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 7, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Howard D. McKibben, who presided over the trial. Ford, a Nevada resident, remains in federal custody. While the court will consider mental health evaluations and background, the conviction alone marks a severe escalation in how federal authorities treat direct threats against the highest office in the land.
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Key Facts
- State: Nevada
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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