Woman arrested on allegations she threatened judge in ballot case

ATLANTA — Police have arrested a Kentucky woman who allegedly threatened a Georgia judge and his family after he dismissed a lawsuit that sought to inspect absentee ballots for signs of fraud in last year’s presidential election.

Erin Northup, 42, is accused of leaving a threatening voicemail with Henry County Superior Court Judge Brian Amero’s judicial assistant soon after he issued his ruling last week, according to the Henry County Sheriff’s Office. Authorities declined to release details about the call.

Amero received “a plethora of calls” after he threw out the last remaining major lawsuit over Georgia’s 2020 election. The lawsuit, filed by supporters of former Republican President Donald Trump, asked the judge to unseal 147,000 absentee ballots cast in Fulton County so they could search for counterfeits.

“I’m all for respecting a person’s First Amendment rights. However, when it crosses the line and it becomes minacious, it will not be tolerated. We will track you down and arrest you,” Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett said Wednesday.

Amero dismissed the case a day after election investigators said they were unable to find any counterfeit ballots within batches identified by Republicans who participated in an audit in November. Amero found that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue because they hadn’t suffered a specific injury.

Three ballot counts showed that Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump in Georgia by about 12,000 votes.

Northup faces a felony charge that she made a terrorist threat. She was arrested by the Louisville Police Department on Friday and is awaiting extradition to Georgia.