Special counsel Jack Smith and Judge Tanya Chutkan, key figures in Trump 2020 election case, are latest victims of apparent "swatting" attempts
CBSN
Washington — Special counsel Jack Smith and U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, two key figures in the 2020 presidential election case against former President Donald Trump, were victims of apparent "swatting" attempts in recent weeks, joining a growing number of public figures targeted with the hoax phone calls.
Local police were called to Smith's home near Washington, D.C., on Christmas Day after a false report of a shooting, though they were informed he is under federal protection and did not respond. NBC News first reported the incident at Smith's residence.
The FBI has warned that "swatting" calls are dangerous to law enforcement and victims surprised by authorities descending upon their homes. Dispatching officers in response to a call can also be costly, the bureau said in a 2022 notice, and take them away from emergencies. The FBI launched a national database to track "swatting" incidents last year.
Two Native Hawaiian brothers who were convicted in the 1991 killing of a woman visiting Hawaii allege in a federal lawsuit that local police framed them "under immense pressure to solve the high-profile murder" then botched an investigation last year that would have revealed the real killer using advancements in DNA technology.
In one of his first acts after returning to the Oval Office this week, President Trump tasked federal agencies with developing ways to potentially ease prices for U.S. consumers. But experts warn that his administration's crackdown on immigration could both drive up inflation as well as hurt a range of businesses by shrinking the nation's workforce.
Meta is denying claims circulating on social media that it forced Facebook and Instagram users to follow President Trump's official accounts, saying the changes some users noticed were standard practices tied to the transition of the POTUS account from the previous administration to the incoming one.