In a recent court ruling, a federal judge denied Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's request to have a man convicted of sending her threatening voicemails pay $65,000 for the construction of her security fence at her Georgia home. The defendant, Joseph Morelli, had pleaded guilty to making the threats and was sentenced to three months in prison earlier this year. The judge, U.S. District Judge Brenda Kay Sannes, ruled that the expenses related to Greene's security enhancements were not directly linked to Morelli's threats.

Morelli, a resident of Endicott, New York, had made several calls to Greene's Washington, D.C., office in 2022 where he threatened to harm her. Prosecutors stated that in one voicemail, Morelli had explicitly stated, "I'm gonna harm you," and in another, he threatened to pay someone to physically harm Greene. Greene sought restitution totaling $65,257 for the construction of the security fence and an additional $1,375 for reconfiguring existing security cameras at her Georgia residence. Lawyers for the government argued that the security expenses were a result of the threats made by Morelli.

However, Judge Sannes concluded that federal law authorizes restitution when there is a property loss, but the funds spent by Greene, or more accurately, her campaign, were for personal security enhancements rather than a direct property loss. The judge further noted that the attorneys representing Greene failed to establish a direct link between the security upgrades and Morelli's threats specifically, as opposed to other threats. Meanwhile, in a separate incident, another individual, Sean Cirillo, a Georgia resident, was arrested on federal charges for threatening Greene.

Cirillo allegedly made two calls to Greene's Washington office on November 8, where he threatened to harm Greene, her staff, and their families. He has been charged with transmitting interstate threats to injure Greene. At an initial hearing, a judge ordered Cirillo to remain in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for later in the week. Greene's congressional office has not yet provided a comment on the recent court ruling or the arrest of Cirillo.