An Arizona congressional candidate is accused of threatening a judge and an attorney, authorities said.
On Sept. 19, David Redkey, the Green Party candidate for Arizona's 3rd Congressional District, was arrested for sending “threats of violence to a Superior Court judge and an attorney’s office,” the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said.
Redkey, 45, was booked into a Phoenix jail on multiple criminal charges after he “admitted to the communications,” according to the Sheriff’s Office.
He faces felony charges of computer tampering and using electronic communication to intimidate, threaten or harass, and a misdemeanor count of threatening or intimidating, according to court records.
In Redkey’s first court appearance on Sept. 19, Deputy County Attorney
Stephen Garcia said the political candidate sent threatening emails to the judge and attorney, which “by extension,” meant their children and others in public service were in “real danger.”
Those emails, the prosecutor added, also included references to a gun.
“A gun which was never recovered,” Garcia said. “That’s a grave concern for the state.”
Donning a shirt emblazoned with the text “being against genocide” over the American and Palestinian flags, Redkey shook his head in disagreement while Garcia spoke.
Redkey’s bond was set at $150,000.
He acknowledged to the judge, however, that he doesn’t have the money to post bail and therefore won’t be able to campaign for office anymore.
Redkey is a former teacher who worked at a handful of school districts around the Valley, according to his LinkedIn profile.
He’s been running to unseat U.S. Rep. Yassamin Ansari, a Democrat, for the state’s Third District, which covers much of central and south Phoenix and a portion of Glendale.
The Arizona Green Party did not endorse Redkey. On its website, the party noted that it actively opposes Redkey’s candidacy.
As a candidate, he’s campaigned on taxing the wealthy to support lower-income residents and making healthcare affordable. He also used his platform to support Palestine and call for a permanent ceasefire, accusing Israel of genocide.
In June 2026, Redkey appeared before the Arizona Senate’s Ad Hoc Committee on Elder Abuse to testify about his years of experience under a court-ordered conservatorship and his longstanding dislike and frustration with Maricopa County's probate system.
Over the years, various banks and guardians have managed his finances after he suffered a traumatic brain injury because a commercial truck T-boned him in 2007, he told lawmakers. Those institutions, however, have lost around $600,000 in his investments, he said.
“These predators are charging large amounts of money to my estate,” he claimed.
The probate court system, he remarked, has denied his recent attempts to end the longstanding arrangement. That’s despite his academic achievements of earning multiple degrees and certifications from Glendale Community College, Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University.
“Somehow, I’m considered incapacitated by the court,” he said. “I can’t control my money.”
Redkey’s next court hearing, a status conference, was set for Sept. 24.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona congressional candidate David Redkey arrested after online threats
