State v. Pelella

by
The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the trial court granting Defendant’s motion to dismiss the charges against him, holding that the trial court incorrectly determined that an expression of an intent to cause harm to another cannot constitute a true threat unless the contemplated harm is imminent or immediate.Defendant was charged with threatening in the second degree, threatening to commit a crime of violence with intent to terrorize, and threatening to commit a crime of violence in reckless disregard of the risk of causing terror. The trial court dismissed the charges, determining that the State would be unable to demonstrate that Defendant’s statement on which the charges were based constituted a “true threat.” The Supreme Court remanded the case to the trial court with direction to deny the motion to dismiss, holding that a jury reasonably could find that Defendant’s statement was an unprotected “true threat” prohibited by Conn. Gen. Stat. 53a-62(a). View "State v. Pelella" on Justia Law