Georgia man charged with leaving threatening messages for 2 Republican senators

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia man accused of leaving threatening voicemails for two Republican U.S. senators appeared in federal court to face charges Monday.

Robert Davis Forney, 25, of Duluth, Georgia, was arraigned in Atlanta on two federal counts of communicating threats in interstate commerce, according to court records. A grand jury indicted him last week.

“Threatening our elected officials and their families is an act of violence that undermines our entire democracy,” U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Theodore S. Hertzberg said in a statement. “Political discourse and disagreements never justify resorting to vile attacks against our nation’s leaders.”

According to prosecutors, Forney called the office of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in January and left voicemails that threatened sexual violence against Cruz and his family. Forney left a similar voicemail threatening sexual violence against Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer the next day, authorities said.

A federal public defender assigned to Forney’s case didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment about the charges.