Ex-Bryan Cave lawyer Ryan Walsh has been arrested for threatening a former colleague. The 30 year old was charged on June 19th with transmitting a threat via interstate commerce, according to StLouistoday.com. The case was sealed until last Tuesday, and Walsh was indicted on the criminal charge on Thursday. The court documents accuse Ryan Walsh of leaving a voicemail for a Bryan Cave employee on June 15th at 9:27 p.m.
Ryan Welsh graduated from the New York University School of Law in 2008. After that he worked for Bryan Cave in New York City but then was laid off. He then worked for another St. Louis firm and afterward moved to Cassville, far in the southwest of Missouri, according to the affidavit filed by Special FBI agent David Herr.
In the court files, Herr noted that Walsh mentioned visiting a mental hospital. The voicemail was excerpted in the complaint, and the caller had said, “I show up to murder pieces of (expletive) like you…let’s record this as a threat and turn it over to the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel. This is like an arbitration or something. But more importantly, I’m going to kill you.”
The seriousness of this type of situation can’t be overstressed. Criminal threats can be defined as when you threaten to kill or physically harm someone and that person is placed in a state of reasonable fear for his or her safety. This threat can be communicated verbally, in writing, or via electronically transmitted devices. A criminal threat can be filed as a misdemeanor or as a felony depending on state laws. If it is filed as a felony, a person can go to state prison.
The intended victim received the voicemail-death threat. U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan was reported as saying, “the victim took the threat seriously.” There were no comments or statements given from Bryan Cave. Ryan Walsh also did not comment as he is being held by authorities.
