Kathy Griffin’s Photo With Trump’s Decapitated Head Could Lead To Arrest, Secret Service May Be Investigating

After facing intense backlash over the gory picture showing her holding a decapitated photo of President Donald Trump in her hand, Kathy Griffin has issued a video apology Tuesday to those whose sentiments have been hurt by her action. She has also deleted the controversial picture. However, Griffin seems to have posted the apology following a couple of tweets from the Secret Service, which indirectly threatened to take disciplinary action against her.

While Griffin has been known to go to any lengths to mock Trump and his choice of policies in the past, most of the people on social media, including Democrats, agreed that her recent parody “crossed the line.” People refused to condone the idea of the comedian and TV show host posing for a picture with a bloody dummy that looks eerily similar to Trump’s head (if it were decapitated and had blood flowing out of its eyes, nose, and ears).

Some even demanded Griffin be arrested for posting a picture that might insinuate a direct threat to the POTUS.

Although it is not clear if the Secret Service, which is tasked with looking into all forms of serious threats against the president, has reached out to Griffin regarding her post, they did post some veiled threats on Twitter, following the matter.

According to the federal law, if Griffin violates U.S. Code 871, which dictates what shall be construed as a threat against the POTUS, she may face five years or more in jail.

“Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits for conveyance in the mail or for a delivery from any post office or by any letter carrier any letter, paper, writing, print, missive, or document containing any threat to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States… shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both,” states the law.

Read: Twitter Reacts To Kathy Griffin Beheading Donald Trump In Graphic Picture

Nathaniel Persily, a law professor at Stanford University, stated that the picture posted by Griffin does not violate the above-mentioned law as it refrains from using threatening words to encourage any sort of harm to the president.

“People are allowed to wish the president dead,” Persily said, USA Today reported. "To threaten someone you need words that encourage some sort of action.”

Determining the distinction between a threat and protected speech is the key to upholding the first amendment, stated the Supreme Court during a 1969 ruling of Robert Watts, who was charged with but not convicted of threatening former President Lyndon Johnson.

"A statute such as this one, which makes criminal a form of pure speech, must be interpreted with the commands of the First Amendment clearly in mind," said the court adding, "What is a threat must be distinguished from what is constitutionally protected speech."

Although Griffin had already posted a disclaimer following the controversial picture that her intention was not to incite violence but to simply mock the “mocker in chief,” the tweets from the Secret Service prompted Griffin to release a non-sarcastic apology, captioned: “I am sorry. I went too far. I was wrong.”

Griffin’s photograph has been heavily criticized by many including the likes of Anderson Cooper, Mitt Romney, and Chelsea Clinton.