Earlier today, Kenneth J. Ward, Jr. pleaded guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to an indictment charging him with threatening to assault and murder a United States District Judge. The proceeding was held before United States District Judge John P. Cronan sitting by designation. Ward faces up to 10 years in prison when sentenced.
The guilty plea was announced by John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
“The judges and other court officials who work every day to keep our country safe and uphold the rule of law should not have to fear for their lives for doing their jobs,” stated United States Attorney Durham. “Threatening judges strikes at the very heart of our system. This Office has no tolerance for violence or threats of violence against public servants. We will prosecute offenders like the defendant to the fullest extent of the law.”
Durham praised the outstanding work of the United States Marshals Service on the case.
The charge is based on Ward’s threat during a telephone status conference related to his pro se civil action filed in federal court in Brooklyn. Ward’s civil case was assigned to the District Judge, who dismissed most of Ward’s claims. On July 15, 2024, during a telephonic conference that was recorded, Ward became angry and threatened to choke the District Judge “to death.” “And that’s on the f---ing – on the record,” Ward stated. At the plea hearing, Ward admitted making the threat in retaliation for the judge’s ruling against him.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Section with Trial Attorney Leonid Sandlar leading the prosecution.
Ward is from Glendale, Queens, and is 59 years old.
E.D.N.Y Docket No. 24-CR-401
