A New York man who allegedly posted videos threatening to "put a bullet" in US Attorney Jeanine Pirro's head, and suggested he might kill President Trump, too, has been arrested on federal charges, but a judge released him over prosecutors' objections.
Daniel Kretsinger, a Hauppauge, New York, resident, posted two videos to X on June 30 directed at Pirro, the federal criminal complaint states. In one, he appeared shirtless and enraged, telling Pirro he was "specifically targeting" her and would travel to Washington, D.C., to shoot her. In a second video, he repeated the threat and added that he might "kill the president too" if Trump "keeps up his bulls***."
Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York charged Kretsinger with transmitting a threat to injure a person across state lines, a crime that carries up to five years in prison. He was taken into custody on August 11 after an arrest warrant was issued four days earlier. But a magistrate judge then released him, over the government's objection, to an inpatient psychiatric treatment program, where he is required to remain, the New York Post reported.
Law enforcement located and interviewed Kretsinger on July 9. During that interview, he acknowledged that the X account where the two videos appeared was his. He also admitted something more alarming: he had previously traveled to Washington, D.C., Florida, and Long Island "in efforts to find" Pirro.
That admission transforms the case from an ugly social-media rant into something far more serious. Kretsinger did not merely mouth off from behind a screen. He told investigators he had already gone looking for the woman he threatened to shoot.
The criminal complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York earlier this month, lays out the language Kretsinger allegedly used. In the first video, posted as a reply to one of Pirro's own X posts, he said:
"Because you're such a lying despicable piece of s***, I'm specifically targeting you when I come to Washington, D.C., and put a bullet directly between your eyes c***."
He continued:
"And if Trump keeps up his bulls*** I may kill the president too."
In the second video, Kretsinger repeated the threat in cruder terms:
"I'm gonna come to DC very f***in soon sweetheart and I'm gonna put a bullet in your f***in head. I love you, you evil lying dirt bag thieving f***ing b***!"
Pirro, who serves as a U.S. Attorney in Washington, has been a prominent figure in the Trump administration's approach to federal law enforcement. Her office has handled high-profile cases that have drawn both praise and political heat.
The timeline moved quickly once the warrant came through. Kretsinger was arrested on August 11, four days after the August 7 warrant. But prosecutors did not get the outcome they sought at the initial court appearance.
A magistrate judge, whose name has not been made public, released Kretsinger to an inpatient psychiatric treatment program despite the government's objection. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York confirmed to the Post that Kretsinger "was released by a magistrate judge, over the government's objection, to an inpatient psych treatment program, where he must remain."
That decision raises a question that keeps recurring in federal threat cases: when a defendant has made explicit, graphic threats against a public official and admitted to traveling across multiple states to find that official, what standard of dangerousness does a court require before it keeps someone behind bars pending trial?
Pirro's office responded with a measured statement. A spokesperson said:
"No one should ever be threatened or targeted for violence. Public officials are no exception, and we commend the United States Marshals Service for its swift action."
Kretsinger did not respond to the Post's request for comment.
The political environment around Pirro's office has been contentious. The administration's aggressive posture on monument vandalism and public-order cases in Washington has made her a visible target for critics. Trump himself publicly rebuked Pirro earlier this year after a felony charge in one high-profile case collapsed, a rare move that put her in an uncomfortable spotlight from both sides.
Strip away the profanity and the case reduces to a clean set of facts. A man posted two videos explicitly threatening to shoot a federal prosecutor. He told investigators he had already traveled to three locations, spanning multiple states, trying to find her. He also threatened the president of the United States.
Prosecutors charged him, arrested him, and asked a judge to keep him locked up. The judge said no.
The broader context matters. Washington has seen a string of cases involving threats and vandalism directed at federal sites and officials. A woman was charged with two felonies for spray-painting the World War II Memorial, and in that case, too, a federal judge later released the defendant over prosecutors' objections, a decision that drew sharp criticism from those who believe the courts are not treating threats to public order and public officials with sufficient gravity.
Kretsinger faces up to five years in federal prison if convicted. Whether he will remain in the psychiatric program or be returned to custody before trial remains unclear. No plea has been reported.
The U.S. Marshals Service moved fast. The court moved differently. Taxpayers and public servants who expect the justice system to take death threats seriously are left to wonder which pace sets the standard.
