Two Found Guilty of Plot to Harm District Judge Using Facebook

Two men have been convicted of threatening to injure a judge, and authorities used Facebook postings as evidence against them.

Zachary Ryan Mitchell, of Brooklyn Park, and Justin Ray Ferrell, of Curtis Bay, each pleaded guilty to threatening to injure a state official, according to online court records.

The Baltimore Sun reported Mitchell and Ferrell met at a drug treatment facility, sharing Facebook messages online that joked about harming a judge. 

But the threat escalated when police learned through a confidential informant that Mitchell planned to buy a rifle, according to The Sun.

Anne Arundel County police said the informant told them Mitchell had attempted to buy a rifle, saying he would use it to kill Anne Arundel District Judge Danielle Mosley, who presided over a theft case of Mitchell's in 2012.

Ferrell and Mitchell were each sentenced to three years in prison for the incident.

Read the full story on The Baltimore Sun.