United States Seventh Circuit

Conviction for threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction against a federal government building is affirmed and sentence vacated where: 1) defendant's statements about his intention to blow up a federal building constituted a true threat and were not protected by the First Amendment; 2) an obstruction-of-justice enhancement to the sentence was proper; but 3) defendant's making of threats to his cellmate alone was not a crime of terrorism subject to a sentence enhancement.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/18/2008
• Published 09/18/2008

Judges

• SYKES, Circuit Judge., Before BAUER, POSNER, and SYKES, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Steven M. Biskupic (argued), Michelle L. Jacobs, Office of the United States Attorney, Milwaukee, WI, for Plaintiff-Appellee, Cross-Appellant., Abner J. Mikva, Abner J. Mikva, Jason Huber (argued), Mandel Legal Aid Clinic, Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellant, Cross-Appellee.