Tenn. man indicted over threat to burn Rep. Boccieri’s home

Staff report

CLEVELAND

A Tennessee man has been indicted on two charges stemming from a threat he made to burn down the house of U.S. Rep John Boccieri of Alliance, D-16th.

Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, said the threat came while legislators were debating the health care bill. Boccieri was one of eight Democrats who switched positions and voted for the president’s proposal.

James L. Schmidlin, 40, of Cleveland, Tenn., was taken into custody Thursday night after a grand jury in Cleveland, Ohio, returned a sealed indictment on charges of communications involving threats of arson and harassing telephone calls.

On or about March 4, 2010, Schmidlin placed a call from Tennessee to Boccieri’s office in which he threatened to set fire to Boccieri’s home, the indictment said.

“Our system of government is the envy of the world because we debate with ideas and thoughtful discourse, not threats of arson,” Dettelbach said.

Schmidlin made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Chattanooga, Tenn., Friday.

At a Friday court hearing in Chattanooga,, a magistrate agreed to release Schmidlin on bond. He did not enter a plea.

If convicted, Schmidlin’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to his case, including his prior criminal record, if any, his roles in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Duncan T. Brown and Thomas E. Getz, after an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Canton.