AI Response based on Precedent.
Yes, protesters chanting threats like “Kristi Noem will hang” could potentially face legal trouble, but it depends on context, intent, and how authorities interpret it under U.S. law.
True Threats vs. Protected Speech
The First Amendment protects a lot of heated political rhetoric, even if it’s offensive or hyperbolic (e.g., chants like “Killer Kristi” or signs criticizing officials, which appeared in reports from this protest). However, true threats — statements where a reasonable person would interpret them as a serious expression of intent to inflict harm — are not protected and can be criminal.
• Federal law (18 U.S.C. § 871) prohibits threats against the President, but for Cabinet officials like the DHS Secretary, it’s covered under broader statutes like 18 U.S.C. § 115 (threatening federal officials) or state
• The Supreme Court case Watts v. United States (1969) distinguished hyperbolic protest speech (protected) from true threats (not). More recently, Counterman v. Colorado (2023) requires that the speaker at least recklessly disregards the risk of causing fear.
Chanting “Kristi Noem will hang” in a large crowd could be seen as:
• Political hyperbole → especially if framed as condemnation (e.g., calling for justice or accountability), similar to historical protest chants.
• A true threat → if it’s specific, direct, and perceived as inciting imminent violence, particularly since Noem is a high-profile federal official overseeing controversial ICE operations.
The additional chant “Save a life, kill ICE” (or variations like “kill an ICE”) is more ambiguous — “ICE” refers to the agency, not individual agents necessarily — but could be interpreted as inciting violence against federal officers, which is a serious crime (e.g., under assault on federal officers statutes).