WILLIAMSPORT — A Centre County man who posted three threats against President-elect Donald Trump just days before his 2025 inauguration has been placed on a one-year probation and fined $500.

Jacob Buckley, 23, of Port Matilda, had pleaded guilty in September in U.S. Middle District Court to a charge of threats against the president-elect.

This is what he admitted posting on TikTok within hours on Jan. 16, 2025:

“I hate MAGA republicans bro on god I’ll kill all of them.” “I’m going to kill Trump.” “Bro we going into a literal oligarchy in 4 days and im going to kill Trump.”

Buckley, who has a history of mental health struggles, told federal Judge Matthew W. Brann prior to being sentenced Wednesday: “There is no excuse for why I did it” and “I wish I could take it back.”

Brann noted during the sentencing that Buckley had no criminal record and there was no evidence he was going to try to carry out the threats.

Defense attorney Arthur P. Fritzinger pointed out his client had accepted responsibility and in the past year taken steps to address his mental health issues.

Putting Buckley in prison will not have any deterrent effect on others, he argued.

Buckley is required as part of his sentence to participate in a mental health treatment program and take whatever medications are prescribed.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth W. Mishoe sought a one-year prison sentence claiming Buckley’s bad decision in making the threats qualified as a serious federal offense.

Referring to assassination attempts on President Trump, he attributed an increase in political violence in the country to people being able to say anything on social media.

The fact Buckley made three posts showed it was not a mistake, the prosecutor said. He would have faced a longer sentence if the threats had been made after Trump was in office, he said.

In his post-sentence comments, Brann inferred Buckley should stop posting on social media because his opinion does not matter to others.

Years ago people had to write a letter to their local newspaper to express their opinion but today they can say what they want on the Internet, he noted. Some of those comments cross the line, he said.

The judge urged Buckley to refrain from marijuana use and stick to his mental health medications. There were references to him using medical marijuana in the past.