Virginia Man Sentenced in Threat Case

June 17, 2010 - COLUMBIA, SC—United States Attorney William N. Nettles stated today that Stephen H. Rosenberg, age 61, of Alexandria, Virginia, was sentenced today in federal court as a result of his March 17, 2010, conviction for sending an e-mail to Senior United States District Judge Matthew J. Perry, Jr., in which he threatened to kill white judges unless Judge Perry reinstated a civil lawsuit that Rosenberg had previously filed. As a result of this e-mail, Rosenberg was charged and convicted for sending a threatening communication and corruptly attempting to influence Judge Perry in connection with his official acts, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 875 and 1503, respectively. United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie sentenced Rosenberg to 65 months' imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Evidence during the three-day trial showed that Rosenberg had a long history of conflict with various officials of the state of South Carolina. As a result, in 2002, he filed a civil lawsuit alleging that he had been unlawfully arrested and incarcerated by state officials. In 2003, Judge Perry dismissed the lawsuit. In 2007, Rosenberg demanded that Judge Perry reinstate the lawsuit, and Judge Perry held a hearing on the demand in May 2007. After the hearing, Rosenberg began sending numerous letters and e-mails to Judge Perry. In late 2008, these messages began to incorporate statements such as “the only good white judge is a dead white judge,” and that the only way he could “get justice” was “to start killing off white judges.”

The pressure to act expressed in the e-mails increased as the health of Rosenberg’s father failed leading up to his death on Christmas day in 2008. This then led Rosenberg to demand action before his father was buried. His father, a retired U.S. Army Colonel, was buried at Arlington National Cemetery on April 6, 2009. That same day, Rosenberg sent Judge Perry another e-mail in which he again referred to killing white judges. He emphasized the point by stating: “No telling how I will react after my father is buried.” This April 6 e-mail was the subject of both counts in the Indictment against Rosenberg.Rosenberg is a graduate of West Point military academy and of law school, and he represented himself both at trial and during the sentencing. As a result of his conduct during the trial, Judge Currie found him to be in criminal contempt of court and imposed a 30-day sentence. During the sentencing today, Judge Currie ordered this time to run consecutively to the 65 months on the threat charges.

The case was the result of a cooperative investigation by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation the United States Marshals Service, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. Assistant United States Attorney Dean A. Eichelberger of the Columbia office handled the case.