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Karen Bass’s former deputy mayor of public safety admits bomb threat hoax targeting Los Angeles City Hall
A former aide to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass who served as the deputy mayor of public safety has agreed to plead guilty to threatening to bomb City Hall last year, the Justice Department said Thursday.
Brian Williams, 61, of Pasadena, agreed to plead guilty to a single-count of «information with threats regarding fire and explosives», which carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
«In an era of heated political rhetoric that has sometimes escalated into violence, we cannot allow public officials to make bomb threats,» said U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. «My office will continue its efforts to keep the public safe, including from those who violate their duty to uphold the law.»
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A view of Los Angeles City Hall. (Getty Images)
The threat was carried out on Oct. 3, 2024 during a virtual meeting with Williams and others related to his duties, federal prosecutors said. During the call, Williams used the Google Voice application on his personal cellphone to place a call to his city-issued cellphone.
He then left the meeting and called the chief of staff of the Los Angeles Police Department, in which he falsely stated that he had just received a call on his city-issued cellphone from an unknown man who threatened to bomb Los Angeles City Hall.
Ten minutes after the call, Williams texted Bass and several high-ranking city officials in the mayor’s office and falsely reported, «Bomb threat: I received phone call on my city cell at 10:48 am this morning. The male caller stated that ‘he was tired of the city support of Israel, and he has decided to place a bomb in City Hall. It might be in the rotunda.’ I immediately contacted the chief of staff of LAPD, they are going to send a number of officers over to do a search of the building and to determine if anyone else received a threat.»
Investigators determined that Williams never received a call and had made the bomb threat himself. Federal prosecutors noted that Williams never intended to carry out the threat.
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L.A. Mayor Karen Bass weighed in on the staffer’s resignation, claiming Friday, «I’m glad the staffer responsible has resigned.» (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The LAPD responded to City Hall to search for any suspicious devices. None were found, prosecutors said.
Williams described the threatening call he claimed to have received to police and showed them the record of an incoming call that appeared as a blocked number on his city-issued cellphone.
That incoming call record was the call Williams had placed to himself from the Google Voice application on his personal cellphone, investigators determined.
Williams then texted Bass and other city officials.
«At this time, there is no need for us to evacuate the building, I’m meeting with the threat management officers within the next 10 minutes,» he allegedly wrote. «In light of the Jewish holidays, we are taking this thread a little more seriously. I will keep you posted.»
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, left, then-Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Brian K. Williams and LAPD Chief Michel Moore at LAPD Police Academy on Dec. 7, 2023 in Los Angeles. Williams will plead guilty to threatening to bomb the City Hall building last year, the Justice Department said. (Getty Images)
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«Mr. Williams, the former deputy mayor of Public Safety for Los Angeles, not only betrayed the residents of Los Angeles, but responding officers, and the integrity of the office itself, by fabricating a bomb threat,» said Akil Davis, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office. «Government officials are held to a heightened standard as we rely on them to safeguard the city. I’m relieved that Mr. Williams has taken responsibility for his inexplicable actions.»
Williams is expected to appear in court in the coming weeks, prosecutors said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Bass’ office.
Crime,Los Angeles,US,Justice Department,Terrorism
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Biden-appointed judge who slapped down Trump deportation policy previously rebuked by SCOTUS
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A federal judge appointed by former President Joe Biden on Thursday again ruled against the Trump administration’s third-country deportation policy, months after the Supreme Court blocked his earlier decision and rebuked him in a rare follow-up order.
The Supreme Court not only stayed Boston-based Judge Brian Murphy’s injunction over the same deportation policy in a 6-3 order last June, but the high court followed up with a second 7-2 order a week later admonishing the judge for flouting its decision. Murphy’s latest ruling is also likely to land before the justices, setting up a fresh test of the judge’s decisions in the high-stakes case.
Murphy, who was confirmed by the Senate along party lines, had issued a sweeping 81-page decision on Thursday finding that the Department of Homeland Security’s process for deporting migrants to third countries (countries that are not specified in the migrants’ removal orders) was unlawful because it violated the migrants’ due process by not giving them enough time to raise fears that they could be tortured in the country they are sent to.
Judge Brian E. Murphy speaks at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on April 17, 2024. (U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary)
Murphy’s decision came after the judge last year issued a preliminary injunction that also blocked DHS from deporting migrants to third countries under the department’s current protocols. The Supreme Court’s order in June halted that decision, but, pointing to a technicality, Murphy said that a separate subsequent ruling he made on May 21 specifically addressing six migrants bound for South Sudan was still «in full force and effect» despite the high court’s stay.
The judge’s move led the Department of Justice to ask the Supreme Court for clarification, and the high court responded by issuing its follow-up 7-2 opinion saying Murphy could not block DHS from deporting the six migrants.
«Our June 23 order stayed the April 18 preliminary injunction in full. The May 21 remedial order cannot now be used to enforce an injunction that our stay rendered unenforceable,» the Supreme Court’s majority wrote.
In an unusual move, the majority also noted that if the government needed further help to stop Murphy’s interference, it could seek a writ of mandamus, a rare legal tool used by a higher court to force a lower court judge to follow the law.
Department of Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem (Getty Images/Alex Brandon)
The high court said it expected Murphy to «now conform [his] order to our previous stay and cease enforcing the April 18 injunction through the May 21 remedial order.»
Justice Elena Kagan, an Obama appointee who agreed with Murphy’s initial decision to block the deportations, sided with the majority in agreeing that the judge had acted defiantly.
«I do not see how a district court can compel compliance with an order that this Court has stayed,» Kagan wrote in a concurring opinion.
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Justice Elena Kagan joined the Supreme Court in 2010 after being nominated by former President Barack Obama. (Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)
The DOJ had fumed over Murphy’s attempt to block the deportation of the six migrants. Solicitor General John Sauer described it as a «lawless act of defiance» of the Supreme Court’s authority when seeking clarification from the high court.
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«For over two months now, the Executive has labored under an injunction that this Court yesterday deemed unenforceable,» Sauer wrote. «This Court should immediately make clear that the district court’s enforcement order has no effect, and put a swift end to the ongoing irreparable harm to the Executive Branch and its agents, who remain under baseless threat of contempt as they are forced to house dangerous criminal aliens at a military base in the Horn of Africa that now lies on the borders of a regional conflict.»
Murphy said in his ruling Thursday that DHS’s deportation policy was «not fine nor is it legal.» During the prior administration, when Murphy was appointed to the federal bench, Biden sought to undo Trump’s strict immigration policies, leading to nearly 10 million migrant encounters at the southern border. Biden also faced criticism for lax policies that involved releasing millions of migrants into the country during his tenure while they awaited immigration hearings. Border encounters have dropped dramatically since Trump retook office.
Murphy stayed his ruling for 15 days to give the Trump administration time to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, given what the judge acknowledged was the «importance» and «unusual history» of the case.
Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.
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supreme court,judiciary,immigration,deportation,justice department
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Talks between Iran and the U.S. wrapped up in Geneva Thursday as officials cited «significant progress» and announced a next meeting set for Vienna within days.
Yet despite senior U.S. officials describing the third round as «positive,» per Axios, Iranian state television also reported that Tehran will continue enriching uranium and rejected proposals to transfer it abroad.
According to The Associated Press , the reports claimed Iran would also push for the lifting of international sanctions — signaling it is not prepared to meet President Donald Trump’s demands.
The negotiations were carried out primarily indirectly, with Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi relaying messages between the two sides.
Oman’s Foreign Affairs’ Minister Badr bin Hamad al-Busaidi gives a thumbs up as he leaves his hotel to reach Oman’s ambassador residency for new round of talks between the United States and Iran to address Iran’s nuclear program. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP via Getty Images)
In a post on X, al-Busaidi confirmed that the round had concluded and said discussions would resume soon.
«We have finished the day after significant progress in the negotiation between the United States and Iran,» he said on X.
«We will resume soon after consultation in the respective capitals. Discussions on a technical level will take place next week in Vienna. I am grateful to all concerned for their efforts: the negotiators, the IAEA, and our hosts, the Swiss government,» al-Busaidi said.
There was no immediate public statement from U.S. or Iranian officials after the session.
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Special envoy Steve Witkoff (C) and Jared Kushner (L) meet with Oman’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Albusaidi (R) in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss ongoing diplomatic negotiations on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (Oman Ministry of Foreign Affairs/X)
Trump’s special Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, attended the three-hour negotiations with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi was also involved, with Iranian officials presenting a draft proposal for a potential nuclear agreement with the U.S., which has key demands.
Iran insists it has the right to enrich uranium and has appeared to refuse to negotiate over other issues, including its long-range missile program and support for armed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei pictured sitting next to a senior military official in Iran. (Getty Images)
Trump, meanwhile, insists on a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program. In his State of the Union address Feb. 24, the president said he prefers a diplomatic solution.
«My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy, but one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon,» the president said. «Can’t let that happen.»
As the Geneva talks unfolded Thursday, Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, also wrote on X that if the main U.S. concern is preventing a nuclear weapon, that stance «aligns» with Khamenei’s fatwa and Iran’s defensive doctrine.
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He added that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has «sufficient support and authority» to come to a final agreement in the talks.
The development came as the U.S. continues assembling military assets, including a fleet of aircraft and warships in the Middle East.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.
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iran,ali khamenei,middle east,sanctions,nuclear proliferation,donald trump
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