Federal Judge Dismissed Indictment based on social media post as "simply not a threat"

In November 2025, Middle District of Florida prosecutors indicted Neda Joudeh, a 35-year old woman, for making an interstate threat to injure or kill another person, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 875(c), based on an online comment that included the statement, "I wish someone would in alive him." At the time of the Indictment, Court Watch commented this "ay be the most elastic application of 18 U.S.C. 875 we've ever seen."
CJA counsel Fritz Scheller filed a motion to dismiss the indictment pursuant to the First Amendment and FRAP 12(b)(3)(B)(v). Among other things, Scheller argued that Joudeh's comment, “on its face, and viewed in its actual political and grammatical context, is not a true threat as a matter of constitutional law.” After a hearing, Judge Carlos E. Mendoza agreed and dismissed the indictment yesterday in a 13-page order, which concludes:

The statement at issue here is not specific, not graphic, and not explicitly violent. It does not express an intent to commit harm in the past, present, or future, and there is no other context to explain how this statement could possibly be threatening. Even the comment in O'Dwyer, which was determined not to be a threat as a matter of law, is more threatening than the one alleged here. The statement “I wish someone would in alive him” is simply not a threat. No reasonable jury could conclude otherwise. The Indictment is due to be dismissed.