Court Orders Release of Woman Who Threatened Trump
U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, appointed during the Obama administration and known for his efforts to block certain agendas, has ordered the release of a woman accused of making multiple threats against President Donald Trump’s life.
Natalie Rose Jones, from Lafayette, Indiana, was taken into custody in Washington, D.C. on August 16 after allegedly threatening to kill Trump and inflict physical harm upon him, as well as conveying threats across state lines.
“Threatening a president’s life is a grave matter,” Boasberg remarked. He emphasized that such threats are met with swift and serious legal action, stating confidently that justice would ultimately prevail.
The Department of Justice indicated that the U.S. Secret Service monitored Jones’s concerning posts on social media, particularly Instagram and Facebook, between August 2 and August 15. Her account, “nath.jones,” reportedly echoed themes common among some liberal groups, branding the president as a terrorist and his administration as a dictatorship.
On August 6, Jones allegedly wrote a provocative Facebook post targeting the FBI, expressing a willingness to harm the president in a violent manner. She wrote, “I am willing to dismantle him and kill this Potus sacrificially by cutting off his trachea with Liz Cheney and all affirmative beings.”
The same individual followed up with another threatening message on August 14, directed at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. When Secret Service officials met with Jones on August 15, she reiterated her claims, threatening to label Trump as a “terrorist” and stating she would kill him if possible.
According to the DOJ, Jones indicated she would use a “compound” to carry out the threat if given the opportunity. After her questioning, she participated in a protest outside the White House, where she declared that the current administration had to go, adamantly rejecting what she referred to as an authoritarian regime.
Jones later confessed to the Secret Service that she had indeed threatened Trump’s life. Notably, she seems to reflect a belief among some American liberals that violent action against political adversaries, particularly Trump, is justified. A survey from the Network Contagion Research Institute and Rutgers University indicated that 55% of self-identified left-leaning respondents felt that assassinating Trump was at least somewhat justified.
A different survey conducted after the president’s golf course incident in Florida in September 2024 found that 28% of Democratic respondents believed it would be better if Trump were harmed on the greens.
Following a second interview with the Secret Service, Jones was arrested again after making additional threats on social media under the name “Nas Jones.” The Secret Service and U.S. prosecutors collaborated to address the potential danger posed by these comments.
In July, Boasberg had criticized Attorney General Pam Bondy over a public complaint linked to Trump and his administration. On Wednesday, he ordered Jones’s release and instructed that she be taken directly to New York City for a psychiatric evaluation.
In response to inquiries about her release, a White House spokeswoman stated that threats against the president must be regarded with utmost seriousness.
Boasberg’s decision to release Jones comes in the wake of other notable federal court actions concerning Trump administration officials, reflecting ongoing legal and political tensions.
