‘I’ll Rip Your Face Off’: S.C. Man Accused of Sending Threatening Email to Judge

Officials say a man in Greenville County, South Carolina, was charged Friday for allegedly threatening a judge via email.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) said the suspect, identified as 36-year-old David Matthew Zwicker, sent an email to a judge which read, “I’ll rip your face off,” WYFF reported.

Authorities charged him with threatening the life, person, or family of a public official, second-degree harassment, intimidation of court officials, and unlawful communication.

An image shows the man involved in the case:

Upstate man charged after threatening public official, SLED says https://t.co/axF4JK64q0

— WYFF News 4 (@wyffnews4) February 24, 2024

According to Fox News, Zwicker allegedly sent nine different emails to the judge “‘with no legitimate purpose except to cause a person to ‘suffer mental or emotional stress,’ according to an affidavit,” the article said.

SLED officials noted the suspect was booked into the Spartanburg County Detention Center regarding the case.

In January, a Nevada judge was attacked by a defendant in a felony battery case who threw himself at the bench in the Las Vegas courtroom, Breitbart News reported at the time.

The outlet said a video clip “shows the moment Clark County District Judge Mary Kay Holthus fell back against a wall and suffered some injuries as her assailant went on the attack. She was not hospitalized, courthouse officials made clear.”

Thirty-year-old Deobra Delone Redden was wrestled to the ground by court and jail officers and courtroom staffers. The clip shows the incident unfold as the judge tries to move out of the way:

A Nevada judge was attacked Wednesday by a defendant in a felony battery case who leaped both a defense table and the judge’s bench.

The judge “experienced some injuries,” according to a court statement. The defendant was arrested and now faces new felony charges. pic.twitter.com/O25wF2RwOR

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 4, 2024

Redden was in the courtroom for sentencing regarding a previous attempted assault, according to Breitbart News. The outlet reported January 8 that the defendant was scheduled to appear before her again.

“Redden’s criminal record is marked by mostly violent offenses and includes prior convictions for three felonies and nine misdemeanors, District Attorney Steve Wolfson said. ‘He’s been violent his entire adult life,’ Wolfson said,” the article noted.