North Carolina Man Pleads Guilty After Threatening Officials on Bluesky

A western North Carolina man has pleaded guilty in federal court to posting the home address of a United States Supreme Court justice online to Bluesky with the intent to threaten, intimidate or incite violence, according to federal prosecutors.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina announced that 59-year-old Kyle Andrew Edwards of Alexander entered a guilty plea in federal court in Asheville.

Federal officials said Edwards pleaded guilty to knowingly making public restricted personal information — specifically the home address of a Supreme Court justice — while intending to threaten or intimidate the justice and knowing the information could be used to facilitate violence against the justice or family members.

Prosecutors described the case as a form of “doxxing,” a term used to describe publishing private or identifying information about someone online without their consent. There is no single, comprehensive federal anti-doxxing law in the United States. Instead of a standalone statute, federal protections against it are handled under broader laws, though several targeted pieces of legislation are currently being debated.

“This case shows the dangers associated with doxxing public officials,” said Russ Ferguson in a statement released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

“Doxxing is dangerous. It exposes officials to all sorts of people that may cause harm, and that harm may be even worse than the doxxer expected or intended,” Ferguson said. “Threatening or harming federal officials is not the way to change policy. If you want to change policy, get involved and go vote.”

According to court documents and statements made during the plea hearing, Edwards used a publicly accessible social media account between April and June 2025 to post comments critical of several Supreme Court justices. Prosecutors said many of the posts contained threatening language or responded to threats made by others online.

Federal authorities said Edwards posted the correct home address of one Supreme Court justice on April 8, 2025. Court records also allege he shared partial or historical address information connected to two other justices.

Investigators said the address postings were accompanied by violent rhetoric aimed at members of the court. According to prosecutors, Edwards wrote in one online post that the Supreme Court “must be destroyed.” In another post, prosecutors said he suggested a justice should “buy Kevlar robes.”

Court documents further allege Edwards wrote that some justices believed “their families are safe” and encouraged others to “start dragging the SC out by their robes” and turn justices “into charcoal.”

The case was investigated by the Supreme Court of the United States Police Protective Intelligence Unit.

Edwards was released on bond following the plea hearing. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

Federal judges will ultimately determine the sentence after reviewing advisory federal sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

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