Midvale man who admitted to threatening state employees ordered off social media
Aug 13, 2026, 4:40 PM
Jared Scott Smith will spend one year in jail after admitting to sending a threatening email that was received by someone at the Utah Capitol. (Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
(Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — A man who admitted to “threaten(ing) bodily injury to influence the conduct of a government organization” will now spend a year in jail before three years of probation.
Charging documents said Jared Scott Smith, 50, of Midvale, sent emails to the Utah lieutenant governor’s staff, at least one of which had a veiled threat saying he would “advance (his) goal in a different way” on March 9, 2026 from Jared Scott Smith, of Midvale.
He was charged with making a threat of terrorism, and the charge was reduced from a second-degree felony to a third-degree felony as part of a plea deal. Third District Judge Matthew Bates sentenced him on July 20 to zero to five years in prison, but suspended that sentence, ordering Smith instead to serve one year in jail and three years on probation.
While on probation, he was ordered not to have any access to social media or use the internet “to make public statements of any kind,” including in chat rooms or the comment sections of news articles.
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Smith was given credit for the 73 days he had already served, and the judge said he would consider early release if he serves 150 days and completes a program at the jail.
Charges said the email referenced dissatisfaction with President Donald Trump and the Republican Party. They also expressed concerns about some social media posts where he said he was a “domestic terrorist,” made hostile posts toward ICE, and threatened violence against President Trump.
The day before the email was sent, he posted that he thinks it is time to organize and arm a militia to “conduct raids on these concentration camps and liberate these poor humans who have been unjustly detained.” He said he was “very serious” in the post, according to the charges.
Charging documents cited a criminal history with 13 convictions, including three felonies. He was on probation for at least two of those convictions when he was arrested on this charge, and the judge found that the days he had spent in jail since his arrest fulfilled the requirements for those sentences.
