Is it illegal to say....?

Question

Is it illegal to say "i want to kill the president of the united states of america"...if so..y....and if its illegal,,,have proof

this isnt a threat btw...i watched this video of the whitest kids u know and it was talking about it...

Answer 1

It is not illegal to say it, but if anything *does* happen, you will be a suspect. If you were heard by the right people.

Answer 2

I agree with you that the need to alter the mind, i.e., to escape from reality, is a basic human need. I think it may be a little lower on the list, though, because humans need love and/or companionship before they need other things. I also agree that the taxation issue, especially when it comes to marijuana, is significant. If everybody could just grow it in their back yard, the government wouldn't get its cut like it does with tobacco and alcohol. The pharmaceutical industry has enough drugs to put the entire nation into la-la land and then some, but they federally regulated, are profitable, and pay taxes. Heroin and cocaine are more problematic because of their addictive properties and potential lethal nature. If anybody could legally buy these drugs, cheaply, there would be a huge spike (no pun intended) in overdoses, so in this regard I believe the government, or at least your average voter, is concerned about the health effects and not so much about the lost taxes.

Answer 3

If the person hearing you say that believes it is a credible threat to the president and refers it to a law enforcement agency, you will be taken into custody. Free speech does NOT mean speech without consequence. If your speech is designed to incite or is deemed to be a threat, you are subject to consequences. So while you are in custody, they will try to determine if your threat is credible, or if maybe you are just a loudmouth. If determined to be credible, you will be arrested and charged according to the evidence.

In this political climate, threats to the president are taken very seriously. If you are so inclined, I'd kee the thought under my hat if I were you.

Answer 4

Whitest Kids You Know President

Answer 5

Supposedly, in America, we have this little thing called freedom of speech. Supposedly, in public venues, you're allowed to say anything you want, no matter how rude or inflammatory. Supposedly, it's totally legal and supported by our Bill of Rights.

Thanks to the Patriot Act, however, I would watch yourself. The Patriot Act basically gives the authorities to do just about anything they want with you for no real reason, and if they decided to go after you, they could take you into custody just for saying things they didn't like.

Furthermore, if a regular (non-government) person heard you and thought you could be serious, they might possibly consider you a threat and report you in a well-meaning but misguided attempt to save a life.

Personally, "I might not like what you have to say but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

Answer 6

While we do have freedom of speech in the U.S., that speech cannot be used to incite or as 'fighting words' for which an illegal act can be contemplated.

The fact is, such speech is considered a threat and as such, while you have every right to say it, you also have every right to be arrested and charged with terroristic threatening.

My PROOF is 35 years of legal practice.

Answer 7

The following is from http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=66114 , posted by SkiBum (!!!), who got it from
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000871----000-.html
by doing a better Web search than I did.

I note that the statement you quote could be argued NOT to be a threat, but as other Answerers have pointed out, there's a lot to be concluded from context!

US Code, Title 18, part 1, chapter 41, § 871.

Threats against President and successors to the Presidency (a) Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits for conveyance in the mail or for a delivery from any post office or by any letter carrier any letter, paper, writing, print, missive, or document containing any threat to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States, the President-elect, the Vice President or other officer next in the order of succession to the office of President of the United States, or the Vice President-elect, or knowingly and willfully otherwise makes any such threat against the President, President-elect, Vice President or other officer next in the order of succession to the office of President, or Vice President-elect, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. (b) The terms “President-elect” and “Vice President-elect” as used in this section shall mean such persons as are the apparent successful candidates for the offices of President and Vice President, respectively, as ascertained from the results of the general elections held to determine the electors of President and Vice President in accordance with title 3, United States Code, sections 1 and 2.

The phrase “other officer next in the order of succession to the office of President” as used in this section shall mean the person next in the order of succession to act as President in accordance with title 3, United States Code, sections 19 and 20.

Answer 8

*****

Answer 9

what do you want to kill the president? mi 2 man fu*k it kill the president and hell no is not illegal

Answer 10

because he is really important and it is considert a threat and u can go in jail