From Wednesday’s Justice Department press release:
Kyle Andrew Edwards, 59, of Alexander, N.C., appeared in federal court today and pleaded guilty to a “doxxing” charge for posting online the home address of a United States Supreme Court Justice with the intent to threaten, intimidate, or incite a crime of violence against the Justice, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina….
According to information contained in documents filed as part of Edwards’ plea and the plea hearing, from April through June 2026, Edwards frequently used an online social media account that was publicly accessible to post comments critical of certain United States Supreme Court Justices. Many of the posts were threatening in nature or were responses to threatening comments made by other users. For example, on June 27, 2025, Edwards posted that the Supreme Court “must be destroyed.” Two days later, on June 29, Edwards posted that a certain Supreme Court Justice should “buy Kevlar robes.”
According to court documents, on April 8, 2025, Edwards used his social media account to post the correct home address of a United States Supreme Court Justice. On the same day, Edwards posted partial or historical information about the neighborhoods or former home addresses of two other United States Supreme Court Justices. On the day Edwards publicly disclosed the Justice’s home address, he made several threatening posts toward other Justices. For example, Edwards posted that a different Justice’s home address was unavailable online “to prevent people from assassinating him.” Edwards also posted that Justices should “think again” if they thought that “their families are safe.” Edwards also encouraged others to “start dragging the SC out by their robes,” and to turn the Justices “into charcoal.” Court documents show that Edwards posted these comments publicly on his own social media account and within conversations in which some other posters were also making similar threats….
To be specific, the charcoal statement was apparently “turn all these motherfuckers into charcoal.”
Whether the law can generally bar publishing the home addresses of government officials is an unsettled and difficult question; compare Kratovil v. City of New Brunswick (N.J. 2025) with Publius v. Boyer-Vine (C.D. Cal. 2017), Brayshaw v. City of Tallahassee (N.D. Fla. 2010), and Sheehan v. Gregoire (W.D. Wash. 2003). But the relevant provision of the relevant federal statute only forbids publishing such home addresses (or certain other information):
- with the intent to threaten, intimidate, or incite the commission of a crime of violence against that covered person, or a member of the immediate family of that covered person; or
- with the intent and knowledge that the restricted personal information will be used to threaten, intimidate, or facilitate the commission of a crime of violence against that covered person, or a member of the immediate family of that covered person.
Such a statute, properly interpreted, would likely fit within the First Amendment exceptions for threats, incitement, or solicitation.
You can also read the specific criminal charges and the statement of factual basis for the plea agreement.
Thanks to the Media Law Resource Center (MLRC) MediaLawDaily for the pointer.
