The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office has dismissed the case against Morgan Morrow, a librarian from West Virginia, who faced charges for allegedly posting threats against President Donald Trump on social media. This decision came on April 16, when prosecutors filed a motion to drop the charges without prejudice, pointing to significant procedural errors during the investigation.
One notable issue was that Morrow had not been properly informed of her Miranda rights during questioning, which cast doubt on the legality of any evidence gathered and ultimately led to the dismissal of the case.
“This lawsuit has been dismissed. We feel this lawsuit should never have been filed in the first place,” remarked Morrow’s attorney, Mark Atkinson, in a statement.
A criminal complaint from January highlighted TikTok posts from Morrow that seemed to incite political violence. One post included a statement, “It’s definitely a sniper!”—interpreted by investigators as a veiled threat aimed at the president. This social media activity was the foundation for the initial charges, but the mishandling of her rights during the interrogation led to the case’s dismissal.
After her arrest, Morrow was interrogated, and during this questioning, she reportedly admitted to making threatening statements against Trump on TikTok.
“After a detailed investigation, Morgan L. Morrow, 39, was taken into custody for allegedly trying to recruit someone online to assassinate President Trump,” the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office stated in a Facebook post.
However, the prosecution’s motion made it clear that Morrow’s confession could not be used, as she had not been informed of her constitutional rights to remain silent or to have an attorney present during the interrogation.
“The prosecution has ruled that the statements made by the defendant during interrogation were not properly governed by her Miranda rights,” explained Charleston criminal defense attorney John Mitchell Jr.
There’s no statute of limitations for felonies in West Virginia, meaning that while these charges were dropped, they could potentially be re-filed in the future, although prosecutors might face challenges due to the lack of security camera footage.
