WASHINGTON (AP) — A Maryland man was arrested Thursday on charges that he made threatening calls to the Georgia offices of Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Seth Jason, 64, repeatedly threatened to assault and kill Greene and her family during several calls to her district offices in between October 2023 and January 2025, according to his four-count indictment. Jason also threatened Greene's staff members and their families, authorities said.
Jason worked for Voice of America and made threatening calls using phone lines connected to studios and control rooms at the news agency's headquarters in Washington, according to U.S. Capitol Police.
Jason, of Edgewater, Maryland, also volunteered as a reserve officer for the Anne Arundel County Police Department in Maryland. The department said in a statement that Jason had served as a volunteer since 2016.
“Anne Arundel County Reserve Officers are unarmed and have no police authority. Mr. Jason is no longer affiliated with the Anne Arundel County Police Department,” the statement said.
A lawyer for Jason did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
A grand jury indicted Jason on charges of influencing a federal official by threat, influencing a federal official by threatening a family member, interstate communications with a threat to kidnap or injure and anonymous telecommunications harassment.
Jason was expected to make his initial court appearance in Washington on Thursday.
“No one should have to live their life looking over their shoulder every day and wondering if those threats are about to be fulfilled and about to come true,” acting U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said at a news conference.
Pirro read aloud some of the statements that Jason is accused of making during the calls to Greene's offices.
“I am looking forward to your book signing. We are all armed and ready to take care of you,” Jason said, according to Pirro.
Threats against members of Congress and other public officials have surged as the nation's political landscape has become increasingly divisive.
During the news conference, Capitol Police Chief Michael Sullivan alluded to the June 14 shootings in Minnesota by a man charged with killing the Democratic leader in the state House and her husband after wounding another lawmaker and his wife.
“This has got to stop,” Sullivan said. “This has changed since Minnesota. We are going to work very, very hard to hold you accountable if you make these threats.”
FILE - Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, R-Ga., presides over a House Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr., File)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.
Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.
“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.
"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.
Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.
Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.
Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.
At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.
Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.
Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.
After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.
“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”
Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.
Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.
His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.
“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”
Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.
FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
