‘Tread Lightly’: Texas Woman Who Threatened to Kill Black Judge Overseeing Trump’s Federal Case, and Called Her a ‘Stupid Slave,’ Thought She Was Protected By Free Speech
A MAGA supporter who was left out of President Donald Trump‘s Jan. 20 pardons is still in hot water for threatening a federal judge who handled Trump’s prosecution for the Capitol riot before it was dismissed.
She now faces another prison term after she left racist voicemails, then similarly targeted a Black Congresswoman who has since passed away, according to authorities.
Abigail Jo Shry, 44, pleaded guilty in November to transmission in interstate commerce containing a threat to injure the person of another — a crime that was not covered under Trump’s pardon after he took office in January. Shry is scheduled for sentencing on May 5 in the Southern District of Texas. Her lawyer declined to comment, according to reports.
Federal authorities say Shry left a threatening voicemail for U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who was overseeing former President Donald Trump’s Jan. 6 case in Washington, D.C.
During the Aug. 5, 2023, call, Shry began with a racist slur, calling Chutkan a “stupid slave n—-,” before threatening anyone prosecuting Trump, all Democrats in Washington, D.C., and the LGBTQ community. She also singled out Democratic U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who died last July.
Shry went further than racist insults, according to the readout of other comments she made.
“Hey, you stupid slave N—er,” said Shry before threatening, “all Democrats in Washington D.C. and all people in the LGBTQ community.”
“You are in our sights; we want to kill you,” Shry continued. “If Trump doesn’t get elected in 2024, we are coming to kill you, so tread lightly, b—h. You will be targeted personally, publicly, your family, all of it.”
Since Shry placed the call from her cellphone, Homeland Security agents quickly tracked her to a home in Alvin, Texas, near Houston. Shry admitted to leaving the voicemail threat for Judge Chutkan but claimed she had no plans to go to Washington, D.C., or Houston to act on it. However, she added that if Lee came to Alvin, “we need to worry.”
At that point she was taken into custody.
During her plea hearing, Shry reportedly argued that her statements in the message were protected under the First Amendment.
“She was wrong, and today’s plea demonstrates how the Southern District of Texas has no patience for those who target and threaten public servants — ignorance of the Constitution notwithstanding,” Alamdar S. Hamdani, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, said in a statement at the time of her pleading.
Previously, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sam S. Sheldon noted during a bond hearing that Shry had prior violations of probation, parole, or supervised release. He also pointed out that she had been charged four times in the past year for “similar conduct.”
In September 2022, Shry pleaded guilty to charges of criminal mischief, resisting arrest, interfering with public duties, and search or transport violations, Brazoria County court records show.
She was convicted of misdemeanor resisting arrest and criminal mischief, receiving a 30-day sentence. On July 11, 2023, she was charged with making a threat causing fear of serious harm. The magistrate judge noted she committed the current offense while out on bond for that charge, less than a month later.
The judge revealed that Shry has two children and that she “suffers from major depression and has a long history of substance abuse” and lives with her boyfriend, who is “presently charged with a family assault against her.”
Shry’s father testified that she struggles with alcohol and watches news to excess.
“Mr. Shry believes that Defendant is a non-violent alcoholic. He testified that she sits on her couch daily, watching the news while drinking too many beers. She then becomes agitated by the news and starts calling people and threatening them,” the court recounted Mark Shry’s testimony. “Mr. Shry stated that his daughter never leaves her residence and therefore would not act upon her threats.”
Several recently released Jan. 6 Capitol rioters, in addition to Shry, have found themselves back in police custody or on the run for serious felony offenses, while one subject was fatally shot by an Indiana sheriff’s deputy within days of being pardoned by Trump.
Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, who was granted clemency by Trump, was arrested Feb. 21 outside the U.S. Capitol and charged with assaulting a female protester.
The new criminal cases stood out among the 1,500 so-called “hostages” pardoned by Trump on his first day in office, along with 14 others whose sentences he commuted, effectively halting hundreds of ongoing prosecutions tied to the Capitol attack.
At the time, Trump brushed off criticism regarding his decision to grant a blanket pardon to all Jan. 6 offenders, despite previously stating he would only pardon those involved in non-violent actions.
“These people have already served years in prison, and they’ve served them viciously,” Trump said after issuing the pardons. “It’s a disgusting prison. It’s been horrible. It’s inhumane. It’s been a terrible, terrible thing.”
Trump ignored concerns about fueling extremism among white nationalists, despite repeated warnings from the previous administration.
Those who overran the Capitol remain under intense public scrutiny as they have been linked to far-right extremist groups such as the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers.
With Trump back in office, there is growing concern that these groups may feel emboldened to incite further unrest. Some who emerged from prison have expressed a willingness to do it all over again if similar circumstances should arise.