A 67-year-old Michigan man named James Donald Vance Jr., who shares the exact initials “J.D. Vance” with the Vice President, was sentenced Monday to two years in federal prison for posting online death threats against President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and a member of the president’s family.
The convicted man, from the Grand Rapids area, used the Bluesky handle “Diaperjdv” to post a series of violent threats in March and April.
In the messages, Vance Jr. stated he did not care if Secret Service agents shot him or if he spent the rest of his life in prison, as long as he could carry out the killings.
James Donald Vance Jr. pleaded guilty to two felony counts: threatening to kill the President and Vice President, and transmitting interstate threats.
Each charge carried a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
United States Attorney Timothy VerHey said in a statement about the case, “The advent of the internet gives us all an opportunity to engage in the healthy exchange of ideas that are so important to a democracy.”
“But some would rather use this tool to threaten and intimidate, conduct that causes fear and damages our democratic ideals. When Vance said he planned to kill our President and the Vice President simply because he disagreed with them, he crossed a line we all understand and so had to be punished.”
“Threats against our nation’s leaders and their families will not be tolerated,” said William Shink, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service’s Detroit Field Office.
“Individuals who threaten the President, Vice President or any U.S. Secret Service protectee will be investigated and held accountable for their actions.”
Vice President JD Vance was born James Donald Bowman and later adopted his grandparents’ surname, becoming James David Vance. The convicted threat-maker, entirely unrelated, goes by James Donald Vance Jr., giving both men the initials “J.D. Vance” and sharing the “James Donald” name at one point in the VP’s life.
The Department of Justice has confirmed there is no relation between the two men.
This case marks the second time in less than a month that a West Michigan man has been sentenced to federal prison for threatening President Trump.
The Department of Justice noted in a press release, “This is the second time in one month that a defendant has been sentenced in the Western District of Michigan for threatening to kill the President.
On October 20, 2025, Richard James Spring of Comstock Park was sentenced to serve 18 months in prison and fined $2,000 by U.S. District Judge Jane M. Beckering in Grand Rapids. Spring pled guilty to threatening to kill President Trump after committing rape.”
The post Bizarre: Michigan Man Named JD VANCE Sentenced to Two Years in Federal Prison for Threatening to Assassinate Trump and the Vice President appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.