Judge Imposes Twitter Ban After Threats Against Senators

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A federal court judge has taken the unusual step of banning a man from tweeting after a Twitter comment following the Orlando nightclub shootings was interpreted by U.S. Capitol Police as a threat against certain politicians.

Kyler Schmitz, 28, an Uber driver who lives on Jefferson Drive in the Huntington area is accused of threatening to shoot a U.S. senator, according to media reports, including NBC-4.

He contends he made the death threats as political satire, after the Orlando nightclub shooting that left 49 dead. Schmitz’s fiancé, Paul Cianciolo, told NBC-4 the Twitter comments were meant to be a parody.

The alleged tweet to a U.S. Senator: “I’m going to shoot you in the head for allowing someone to murder my loved one," caught the attention of U.S. Capitol Police, The Washington Blade reported. Several media outlets reported one of the members of Congress he was targeting was Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, a Republican.

Special agents with the Capitol Police reportedly visited Schmitz’s residence June 15 to investigate the incident, Politico reported, citing court filings. Schmitz allegedly admitted during the meeting to “purposefully” sending the tweet, which he said was intended to be a “direct threat.”

But after police investigated Schmitz because of the threats, they found that he had tweeted out even more threats after their meeting and when they found him driving two blocks from the U.S. Capitol, he was arrested Friday by the U.S. Marshal's Service and held in jail.

He was released into home detention to his aunt, according to a report by The Washington Blade, and has been ordered to undergo a mental evaluation as well as be evaluated for alcohol and drug abuse.

Schmitz' Twitter account, @chirperson, appears to have been suspended.

PHOTO: U.S. Capitol photo courtesy of Architect of the Capitol's Office