West Palm Beach police say a 39-year-old local man is behind a string of alarming 911 text messages that mentioned both downtown West Palm Beach and Mar-a-Lago, the Palm Beach estate linked to former President Donald Trump.
Officers arrested Jeffrey Jay Pratt on May 21 and charged him with one count of written threats to kill or do bodily injury. According to police, no one was hurt, and the case is still very much an active investigation.
CBS12 reports that on May 19, emergency communications staff started receiving multiple unsolicited text messages through the county's text-to-911 system. The messages allegedly referred to violence against people connected to downtown West Palm Beach and Mar-a-Lago, with one message quoted in an affidavit as stating, "people from downtown have to die."
Investigators told reporters they traced the messages to a single prepaid device, pulled subscriber and location information through emergency disclosure requests, and reviewed surveillance video that showed a person using a cellphone on Douglass Avenue. Detectives then contacted a man they say was found with a phone that matched the number tied to the texts.
What The Charge Covers
Pratt is charged under Florida's written-threat law, which applies to written or electronic communications that threaten to kill or do bodily injury. Under Florida Statute Chapter 836, sending or posting a writing that contains such a threat can be treated as a felony, with the possibility of enhanced penalties depending on the circumstances.
Whether any message counts as a "true threat" under the law, and is therefore not protected speech, typically becomes a key issue if a case like this moves forward in court.
How Text-to-911 Helped Investigators
Palm Beach County's 911 system allows residents to text for help when calling is unsafe or impossible, and those electronic records can double as evidence. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office notes that public safety answering points are text-capable and that message logs and associated location data can help investigators track senders and line up what they see on surveillance video.
Detectives said they used that mix of 911 text records, carrier disclosures, and video footage to connect the threatening messages to the prepaid device and then to Pratt.
According to CBS12, police say Pratt agreed to let them search the phone and, in a recorded interview, admitted that he owned and used the device and sent at least one of the threatening texts. Jail records indicate he was booked early Friday, with court documents listing his bond at $150,000.
West Palm Beach police say detectives are still gathering additional records and surveillance footage as the investigation continues.
