Ohio Woman Charged for Sending Racist and Threatening Messages to Michigan Lawmakers

A woman in Ohio was charged with two felonies after she allegedly sent racist death threats to two Black Michigan lawmakers, according to the Detroit Free Press.

Sandra Bachman, 58, is being accused of leaving the threats over voicemail to Rep. Sarah Anthony in May 2021 and Rep. Cynthia Johnson in June 2021.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office charged Bachman with one count of false report or threat of terrorism, one count of ethnic intimidation, and two other counts related to making a threat using a phone. If she is found guilty, she could face up to twenty years in prison, according to the Detroit Free Press

Bachman still needs to be found guilty or innocent by the law, but politicians complaining of threats is not uncommon. One month ago, the only Black female lawmaker in West Virginia sued an anti-abortion group for making a racist Facebook post and email towards her because she supported legislation that would eliminate the restrictions on abortion in the state.

In January, Rachael Rollins, the first Black woman to be the US attorney in Massachusetts, faced racist threats after her confirmation process was questioned by many conservative politicians.

From Detroit Free Press:

These are the latest threats against Johnson and other Michigan elected officials. Johnson received a slew of threats after she pushed back against Donald Trump’s former attorney Rudy Giuliani and others during a legislative hearing after the 2020 election.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, along with U.S. Reps. Peter Meijer, R-Grand Rapids, and Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, as well as many other Michigan lawmakers also have received multiple threats.

“This rise in threats against elected officials will not be tolerated,” Nessel said in a statement.

Nessel’s office shared some of the language used in the alleged voicemail threats. The voicemail left for Anthony included “you won’t see the bullet coming,” and implied that someone was coming to Michigan. The voicemail left for Johnson had multiple racist slurs and language predicting she was going to die, according to the Detroit Free Press.

Bachman will appear in district court on March 31 for her arraignment, according to the Detroit Free Press.