In 2002, the state of Michigan passed a statue to cover criminal behavior that deal with false threats or reports of terrorism. MCL 750.543m, makes a false threat of terrorism a serious felony charge:
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- A person is guilty of making a terrorist threat or of making a false report of terrorism if the person: threatens to commit an act of terrorism and communicates the threat to any other person or, knowingly makes a false report of an act of terrorism and communicates the false report to any other person, knowing the report is false.
- A person who violates this section is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 20 years or a fine of not more than $20,000.00, or both.
- It is not a defense to a prosecution under this section that the defendant did not have the intent or capability of committing the act of terrorism.
Examples of False Threat of Terrorism Cases
The vast majority of people we see getting charged for these types of crimes are young male offenders (age 17 to 24) or juveniles (under age 17) . The vast majority of these cases involve inappropriate communications. These communications take place online using social media sites as facebook and twitter:
- Internets post on social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter which contain threats to shoot individuals at the er place of employment (fast food chain).
- Juveniles (age 14) overheard at lunchtime planning an event to shoot other students at school that are not wearing a red shirt.
Terrorism and Swatting:
Wikipedia defines swatting as deceiving an emergency service into sending a law enforcement or SWAT team to another person’s address. The reason these emergency services show up is because of a false report of a bomb threat, hostage situation or murder. According to Wikipedia, swatting is a form of terrorism designed to cause disruption to society. An example of these disruptions is wasted police resources. Many times, those who are facing these criminal charges claim it was a hoax. That is not a defense to the crime! Another point that needs to be made is that many times law enforcement officers trace the I.P. addresses of the message and use this to figure out who sent the message. If you are using a computer to commit a crime is going to leave a trail that will lead law enforcement officers to you!
Defending False Threat of Terrorism Cases
It is extremely important to hire an attorney who knows what they are doing when you are facing this serious felony charge. You need an lawyer who can make sure you have the best defense strategy possible in order to get you the best results possible. This charge is a Class B felony when it comes to purposes of sentencing in Michigan. Local prosecutors can take a non-negotiable stance on these cases. A conviction of this charge will most certainly lead to incarceration! A lot of cases in our local court system are an excessive over reaction by prosecutors.
We believe that in order to get our clients the best results possible, an aggressive defense must be waged. Our defense will begin by obtaining a complete psychological profile of our client. We will do this to counter the stance taken by the government about protecting society. Once a proper psychological profile has taken place, we can show the prosecutor handling the case that our client is not a threat to society. We will get a massive amount of letters written from people who know our client. Telling the prosecutor that our client is not a threat and that this behavior is not in character.
When we take these measures, we have been will be able to likely get our clients HYTA. We can also greatly reduce the amount of incarceration our clients face by these aggressive defense strategies we engage in for our clients.
Rest assured though, if you are not guilty of the charges, we have the case results you want to see in order to get you the best results possible!
Michigan School Threats and High Case Bonds
Typically schools do not like to give out information about their students. They are very restrictive in giving out this information. However, these cases a lot of times make the news in the local media and the students name usually is made public. This coverage many times gives a distorted and false narrative about what actually happens. The accused is made to look like a moral monster. Attorney Shawn Haff and his teams of lawyers have the skills to defend your child reputation when it is being smeared in public and make sure your child’s reputation is not ruined.
When it comes to bond, the vast majority of judges in town are going to make sure that amount is high. The highest bonds are usually reserved for threats against schools. You need to have an attorney present at your arraignment to make sure your bond is as low as possible. If you do not have an attorney present, you may know for certain that you will be hammered with a high bond and that means you may very well have to remain incarcerated while your case moves through the judicial system.
If you have any questioned related to making a false threat of terrorism, please call me today at 616-438-6719. I will be happy to answer all of your questions quickly. Do not wait. Call today!