A Michigan man has been arrested for allegedly threatening to assassinate President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance on social media, claiming that if either of them returned to his city, they would leave “in a body bag.”
The suspect, James Donald Vance Jr.—not to be confused with the current vice president, James David “JD” Vance—was arrested this week and charged with one count of threatening to kill or injure the President and Vice President of the United States, as well as two counts of sending an interstate threatening communication, according to court records.
An indictment filed Wednesday in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan alleges that James Vance used the social media platform Bluesky to post the threat.
According to the indictment, James Vance “knowingly and willfully” threatened to “take the life of, and inflict bodily harm upon, the President and Vice President of the United States.”
He allegedly made the incriminating post on April 1, 2025, under the username “Diaperjdv,” and wrote:
“If tRump, Vance, or Musk ever come to my city again, they will leave it in a body bag. I will either be shot by a secret service sniper or spend the rest of my life in prison. I’ve only got about 10 years of life left anyway so I don’t f—ing care either way.”
The charge of threatening to kill the president carries a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
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The threatening communication charge in connection with that post states that in writing the comment on Bluesky, James Vance was “consciously disregarding a substantial risk that his communication would be viewed as threatening violence against other persons.”
The second threatening communication charge stems from a March 7 post in which James Vance allegedly threatened the president in response to another user’s post with the title “Donald Trump Jr. Considering a Run for President in 2028.”
In response, James Vance wrote, “I will murder that stupid f—er before he gets secret service protection,” according to the indictment.
James Vance appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maarten Vermaat on Wednesday and formally pleaded not guilty to all three counts. According to records, he was released on personal recognizance bond. Conditions of his release include not using or possessing alcohol or narcotic drugs without a prescription, submitting to drug testing, not leaving the Western District of Michigan without court permission, and not possessing a firearm.
The defendant is also required to participate in a computer monitoring program and is prohibited from “accessing any social media platform.”
The case has since been assigned to United States District Judge Paul L. Maloney, a George W. Bush appointee.
Earlier this month, a 73-year-old man in California was arrested after making multiple threats against Trump on social media, including writing that he would “not rest” until the president was “six feet under and off the face of the earth.”
