Man Jailed For Facebook Police Death Threats
Iowan wrote of "shooting every white cop I see"
MAY 14--Days after a Georgia woman was arrested for a Facebook post advocating the shooting of “every white cop in the nation,” an Iowa man cribbed the threatening words for his own Facebook page, a copy and paste job that now has him locked up in jail.
Michael Leshawn McCullum, 30, was arrested Tuesday by Iowa City cops on a warrant charging him with harassment. Pictured at right, McCullum is being held on $100,000 bail on the aggravated misdemeanor count.
According to investigators, McCullum earlier this month posted a Facebook message stating, “I’ve thought about shooting every white cop I see in the head until I’m either caught by the police or killed by them.” He added, “Ha!!!! I think I can pull it off. Might kill at least fifteen tomorrow. I’m plotting now.”
McCullum’s post came in the days following the Baltimore riots. Police allege that he made the threat using the online alias “Mike Jones.”
The threatening words attributed to McCullum first appeared on the Facebook page of Ebony Dickens, a 33-year-old mother from suburban Atlanta.
As Baltimore rioters looted businesses and torched buildings, Dickens allegedly posted an April 27 Facebook message announcing that, “All Black ppl should rise up and shoot at every white cop in the nation starting NOW.” The message continued, “I condone black on white killing. I’ve thought about shooting every white cop I see in the head until I’m either caught by the police or killed by them. Ha!!!! I think I can pull it off. Might kill at least fifteen tomorrow. I’m plotting now.”
Dickens’s arrest was widely reported, with many news accounts including transcripts of her alleged Facebook threat, which closed with the words “Death to all white cops nationwide.” Charged with making terroristic threats, Dickens is free on $10,000 bond and has been ordered to stop using her social media accounts.
The criminal complaint charging McCullum with harassment lists the incident date as May 1, two days after Dickens was arrested.
McCullum, now being held in the Muscatine County jail, has a lengthy rap sheet that includes convictions for drunk driving, pot possession, trespass, possession of drug paraphernalia, and assault on a peace officer. (1 page)
