A Georgia man pardoned for threatening Nancy Pelosi is accused of a new threat, this time against the federal judges who handled January 6 cases.
Story Snapshot
- Cleveland Grover Meredith Jr., 58, was arrested on Monday, November 2, and charged with sending a threat across state lines.
- The FBI says he wrote an April 23, 2026, Facebook post saying all federal judges in January 6 cases “will be EXECUTED!”
- Meredith was sentenced to 28 months in prison in 2021 for threatening to shoot then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and President Trump pardoned him in January 2025.
- A judge ordered him held until a detention hearing set for Thursday, November 5.
Federal Charge Tied To Facebook Post
Federal agents arrested Cleveland Grover Meredith Jr. on Monday, November 2. Prosecutors accuse him of threatening to kill the federal judges who handled cases from the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. He is charged with sending an interstate threat, which means a threat to hurt someone that crosses state lines, such as a post online. He has not been convicted of the new charge.
The charge rests on one post. According to an FBI affidavit, a sworn statement an agent files to support a charge, a public Facebook account linked to Meredith posted “ALL J6 Federal JUDGES will be EXECUTED!” on April 23, 2026. The post ended with a grinning face and a raised middle finger. The account called its owner “J6NUMBER1 Winner of the J6 Challenge.” The agent wrote that the post counts as a criminal threat partly because of Meredith’s “history of violent online rhetoric.” Prosecutors have not released a motive, and no public response from Meredith or a lawyer for him has been reported.
The FBI got a tip about the post the day it went up. Agents say records from Meta, Google and T-Mobile tied the account to Meredith, who lives in Sautee Nacoochee, Georgia. U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Elizabeth McBath signed the complaint on October 29 in Atlanta. A magistrate judge is a federal judge who handles early steps in a case, such as approving charges. The office of Theodore Hertzberg, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, is bringing the case.
A Second Threat Case After A Pardon
This is not Meredith’s first threat case. On January 7, 2021, the day after the Capitol riot, he was staying at a hotel about a mile from the Capitol. Prosecutors said he texted a relative that he was thinking about “putting a bullet” in Pelosi’s head. Agents later found a handgun, a rifle with a scope and about 2,500 rounds of ammunition in his truck and trailer. He pleaded guilty to sending an interstate threat and was sentenced to 28 months in prison.
On January 20, 2025, his first day back in office, President Trump pardoned Meredith along with more than 1,000 other people charged in connection with January 6. A pardon wipes out the punishment for a federal crime. It does not cover new acts.
The new complaint says the FBI had questioned Meredith twice before about other posts that seemed threatening: in person at the federal courthouse in Gainesville, Georgia, on November 12, 2024, and by phone on August 14, 2025.
What The Government Must Prove
Free speech does not cover true threats. A true threat is a serious statement that the speaker means to commit violence against a person or group. The Supreme Court has said angry venting or political exaggeration is not enough for a conviction. In a 2023 case, the Court said the government must show the speaker knew his words could be taken as a threat, or ignored that risk. The FBI affidavit points to Meredith’s past conviction and his online history to argue that he knew how the post would be read.
Why Threats Against Judges Matter
The U.S. Marshals Service protects about 2,700 federal judges in 94 court districts. In fiscal year 2024, it looked into 822 threats and possible threats against the judges and court officials it protects. Judges who fear for their lives cannot rule freely, and that hurts everyone who goes to court, whatever their politics.
What Comes Next In The Case
A magistrate judge granted the government’s request to keep Meredith in jail until that hearing. At the detention hearing on Thursday, November 5, a judge will decide whether he stays locked up while he waits for trial. That hearing decides custody only; the charge stands either way. To win a conviction, prosecutors will have to prove to a jury that Meredith wrote the post and that it was a true threat.
Sources:
newsweek.com, thedailybeast.com, storage.courtlistener.com, justice.gov, usmarshals.gov
