NY Man Gets 4 Years For Threats Against Obama, Rep. Waters

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — An upstate New York man has been sentenced to almost four years in prison for making racist threats against former President Barack Obama and California Congresswoman Maxine Waters.

U.S. District Court Judge Glenn Suddaby sentenced 61-year-old Stephen Taubert of Syracuse on Tuesday. A federal jury in March found Taubert guilty of making several phone calls to congressional offices in 2017 and 2018 and using racial slurs to threaten public officials.

Taubert sought a sentence of home detention, citing his mental health and medical problems. According to Syracuse.com , Taubert told the judge Tuesday he gets angry when he sees negative comments about President Donald Trump on social media and the news.

Friends and family submitted letters to the judge saying Taubert would never follow through on his threats.