Federal prosecutors say a Rome man made violent threats on a TikTok livestream and now faces a federal charge.
🧭 What’s Happening: According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, agents arrested and detained Jauan Rashun Porter on a federal complaint that he knowingly and willfully made a threat against the President of the United States.
- Prosecutors say Porter joined a July 26 TikTok livestream about President Donald Trump, captioned “Alligator Alcatraz,” and wrote, “So there’s only one way to make America great and that is putting a bullet in between Trump’s eyes.”
- They say he later added: “I’m gonna kill Donald Trump. I’m gonna put a 7.62 bullet inside his forehead,” and, “I’m gonna watch him bleed out and I’m gonna watch him die . . . I’m gonna do that.”
- When the host asked about federal agents, prosecutors say Porter replied, “I’m gonna kill them too.”
🔔 What It Means For You: Online words can bring real charges. Prosecutors say threats against public officials will lead to swift action. A detention hearing is set for Aug. 12 in Rome.
🕵️ Between The Lines: U.S. Magistrate Judge Walter E. Johnson ordered Porter detained until a detention hearing on Aug. 12 at 2:30 p.m., according to prosecutors.
🚓 More Findings: Investigators say they searched Porter’s apartment and found two pipes, pistol ammunition, and Tannerite, which they described as an explosive.
⚖️ Criminal History Noted In Court: Prosecutors say court records show Porter has prior convictions for terroristic threats, influencing a witness, mutiny in a penal institution, drug possession, battery, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and domestic violence. They say he is on probation.
🌐 The Big Picture: Online threats can trigger fast federal attention, especially when they target public officials. Agents and local officers in Georgia say they work together on cases that begin on social media. Even comments on a livestream can lead to a federal courtroom.
🧾 The Sources: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg, Robert Donovan, United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office, court documents.
Before You Dismiss This Article…
We live in a time when information feels overwhelming, but here’s what hasn’t changed: facts exist whether they comfort us or not.
When A&W launched their third-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder in the 1980s, it failed spectacularly. Not because it tasted worse, but because customers thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If basic math can trip us up, imagine how easily we can misread complex news.
The press isn’t against you when it reports something you don’t want to hear. Reporters are thermometers, not the fever itself. They’re telling you what verified sources are saying, not taking sides. Good reporting should challenge you — that’s literally the job.
Next time a story makes you angry, pause. Ask yourself: What evidence backs this up? Am I reacting with my brain or my gut? What would actually change my mind? And most importantly, am I assuming bias just because the story doesn’t match what I hoped to hear.
Smart readers choose verified information over their own comfort zone.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
