Elon Musk has been ordered to appear in a Philadelphia courtroom after the city’s top prosecutor accused the world’s wealthiest person of illegally awarding $1 million to registered voters in the state.
The same day Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner sued Musk and his political action committee this week, the billionaire shared a post on X — the social media platform he owns — that claimed Krasner “knows it’s not illegal but wants a leftist judge to stop it before Election Day.”.
That post “immediately triggered an avalanche of posts from Musk’s followers,” including “antisemitic attacks” against the district attorney and threats of violence, attorneys for Krasner’s office told a judge on Wednesday in a push for additional security at an upcoming court hearing.
“Even worse, one account responded to posts about the lawsuit at least 19 times by inviting political violence, posting Krasner family’s home address,” according to the filing, which quotes one user as repeatedly posting on X that “Krasner loves visitors. Mask up and leave all cellphones at home.”
“These posts, which unquestionably are criminal … remain posted on Musk’s X website today,” the complaint states.
Hours later, Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Angelo Foglietta moved Friday’s planned hearing on the lawsuit to Thursday morning, to a courtroom inside City Hall.
The judge ordered that all parties must be present, meaning Musk and representatives of his Donald Trump-supporting America PAC are required to attend.
The lawsuit marks the first legal action against the billionaire’s stunt, which offered people who signed his PAC’s petition supporting First and Second Amendment rights the chance to win a random daily $1 million prize drawing.
But the sweepstake is only open to registered voters in seven swing states, drawing warnings from election law experts and civil rights groups that the scheme could be seen as an illegal vote-buying operation, by creating a roundabout incentive to get people to register to vote.
Krasner’s office accused Musk of launching an “illegal lottery scheme” to influence voters, and argued that only the state of Pennsylvania can administer lotteries.
Krasner also argued that Musk’s claim that the prize is a “random” drawing “appears to be false,” according to the lawsuit. “Multiple winners that have been selected are individuals who have shown up at Trump rallies in Pennsylvania,” the suit added.
The stunt has also been the subject of a warning from the Department of Justice.
Musk, meanwhile, defended the contest, claiming that the petition is not designed to register people to vote and is merely a “petition in support of the Constitution of the United States, and in particular, freedom of speech and the right to bear arms,” he said on X last week.
Pennsylvania is at the center of a growing amount of litigation surrounding the 2024 election, including a lawsuit from Trump’s campaign in Bucks County that claims voters submitting mail-in ballots in person have been turned away.
Pennsylvania’s secretary of state Al Schmidt denied those claims, and a judge assured that those voters could submit their mail-in ballots. The incident impacted three people, according to court filings.
The Independent has requested comment from representives for America PAC and X.
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