Despite President Trump’s waves of pardons for allies and supporters seeking to overturn his 2020 election loss, as well as his clemency for all Capitol riot defendants, at least one federal case with ties to the 2020 election remained open.
Abigail Shry was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to phoning a vulgar, violent, and racist threat to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in August 2023.
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The warning came just hours after Chutkan was assigned to oversee Mr. Trump’s criminal case for allegedly trying to overturn his 2020 loss, which included Jan. 6.
Shry apologized in court on Wednesday before Judge Keith Ellison for her “abhorrent” voicemail, adding it “was not and is not reflective of my character or beliefs.”
According to the Justice Department’s charge filings, Shry, 45, left a message for Chutkan threatening to kill anyone who “went after President Trump.”
According to the document, Shry referred to Chutkan as a “slave,” used a racist epithet, and threatened a Texas Democratic congresswoman, “all Democrats,” and the LGBTQ community.
According to court pleadings from the Justice Department, Shry’s audio message reportedly stated, “If Trump does not win the election in 2024, we will come to kill you, so tread lightly.”
Investigators claim they linked the message to Shry after discovering that her mobile number was used to make the threatening call.
In November 2024, Shry pleaded guilty to a federal charge of sending an interstate threat. Her sentencing hearing had been postponed several times before Wednesday’s court date. Prosecutors requested a sentence of 33 months.
On the day of Shry’s guilty plea, the Justice Department provided additional information on its investigation, stating that Shry admitted to making the call but “noted that she had no plans to travel anywhere to carry out anything she stated.” However, she allegedly informed investigators that “if the congresswoman ever traveled to her city, then ‘we need to worry.'”
Shry’s case was among a growing number of threats made against federal judges in recent years. According to the U.S. Marshals Service, which guards federal judges, more than 560 threats have been examined this year. That is more than all of 2024 and on track to reach or exceed 2023 levels.
A federal judge had temporarily ordered Shry to remain in pretrial detention in the case. In a May 2024 hearing, a Justice Department prosecutor stated, “My greatest concern in this case is that she starts watching FOX News again, gets herself spun up, goes out, gets a case of beer, and continues to get herself spun up.” There’s no way to predict what will happen here except to look at what she’s done in the past six months.
A federal judge later released Shry on the condition that he not own firearms or consume alcohol.
According to a sentencing assessment presented by the Justice Department in Shry’s case, he faced up to five years in jail. Federal criminals are frequently sentenced to less than their maximum prison term.
