The Democratic Party nominee for Arkansas’s state auditor was arrested Friday by police on a charge of felony terroristic threatening.
Diamond Arnold-Johnson, 32, was the subject of an arrest warrant, according to Little Rock, Arkansas, police who said she was taken into custody without incident.
Her husband, Arick Johnson, was tried in a Pulaski County court on a charge of terroristic threatening based on Facebook posts related to Judge Herbert Wright and other court officers. During the August trial of her husband, Arnold-Johnson admitted she wrote the Facebook posts that prompted the terror threat charge, according to an ABC7 report.
The warrant for Arnold-Johnson’s arrest was subsequently obtained and served Friday. Police said officers attempted to serve Arnold-Johnson October 13, but she refused to comply and SWAT was called out.
“The situation continued to intensify and the decision was made not to escalate a non-violent situation, only to serve a non-violent warrant,” police said.
Arnold-Johnson is being held at the Pulaski County jail, according to the ABC7 report.
Judge Wright may not be threatened, though, according to a University of Arkansas at Little Rock report.
“Although these posts make embarrassing accusations against Pulaski County Judge Herbert Wright and other officers of the court, they are not a true threat because the primary purpose of these posts is to communicate the author’s intent to stage a protest in Judge Wright’s neighborhood,” wrote Elizabeth Lyon about the relevant Facebook posts.
“YOU might get hunted down on [movie camera emoji] like herbert wright is about to,” one of the disputed Facebook posts began on Mr. Johnson’s page. “S DUB SPECIAL coming soon! BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY”
Lyon claims “S Dub” is a broadly recognized colloquial reference to Southwest Little Rock and provides a germane Urban Dictionary example. Johnson reportedly lives in a neighborhood considered “down in the s-dub.”
The report notes the alleged victim is a Pulaski County circuit judge, which caused all of the other Pulaski County circuit judges to recuse themselves. Unfortunately for Johnson, Judge Cathleen Compton set a high bond for Johnson before recusing herself September 29, 2021, citing a personal relationship with the alleged victim.
“Thus, for four and a half months after his arrest, Mr. Johnson sat in jail with no opportunity to appear before a neutral magistrate to point out what should have been clear from the start,” exclaimed Lyon.
The Democratic Party is not happy with Arnold-Johnson’s arrest less than two weeks before Election Day.
“Earlier today, we were made aware that Diamond Arnold-Johnson was arrested by Little Rock Police,” a Democratic Party of Arkansas spokesperson said in a statement. “Everyone has the right to due process; however, our Party firmly believes people must be held accountable for any criminal behavior, especially candidates for public office.”
“The Democratic Party of Arkansas did not recruit her to run for Auditor of State, and we cannot bar her from running for this position,” the spokesperson continued. “We remain focused on working for a better Arkansas and winning races across the state.”
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