Title: What to Do If Someone Threatens You
Headings: What to Do If Someone Threatens You
What to Do If Someone Threatens You
Criminal and Civil Remedies
What's a Credible Threat?

Content: If a threat is determined to be credible by the police, then they may be able to arrest the aggressor, who could then face criminal charges for making the threat. Although making threats is generally a misdemeanor offense, it is a serious offense and frequently results in jail time if a defendant is convicted. In addition to a civil lawsuit for monetary damages stemming from emotional distress or other losses, a victim can also pursue a civil harassment, or domestic violence, restraining order. A restraining order is a court order that authorizes law enforcement to arrest an aggressor named in the order merely for coming within a specific distance (such as 100 feet) of the protected individual. What's a Credible Threat? If someone threatens to harm you, such as with violence, or via the destruction of property, if the threat is believable/credible, it's criminal. Generally, law enforcement must determine whether a threat is credible before they take action. In the digital age we live in, this can be incredibly difficult given the vast amount of vitriol online. To be a credible threat, there needs to be some context that makes the victim, or a reasonable person in the victim's shoes, believe the aggressor is serious and able to carry the threat out. However, in some cases, if credibility cannot be determined, a threaten-er can still be arrested, even for a Facebook threat.