In the past week, three Michigan politicians have been “swatted.” The latest incident involved Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. 

Police were called to Benson’s home in Detroit on Saturday night and Monday morning, after someone called in a false police report. According to a spokesperson for Benson, no one was injured and there were no arrests. 

“Swatting” is a term used to describe someone making a false police report, usually about a very dangerous situation, in order to have a SWAT team sent to someone’s house or place of work. The false reports are often used to harass and intimidate the homeowners. 

In a social media post on Aug. 13, Benson classified the swattings as political violence. 

“I will not be intimidated. These threats never have and never will deter me from my job: ensuring Michigan citizens can have confidence in their secure, fair, accurate elections,” Benson wrote. “I will continue to stand with election professionals throughout Michigan to guard every citizen’s vote no matter who they are, where they live, or who they vote for.” 

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin and former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers were also ‘swatted’ this past fall. 

Michigan State Police arrived at Slotkin’s home in Holly, Michigan on Aug. 8. The call that prompted the police response was later revealed to be a false report. No further details were provided. 

According to Lynsey Mukomel, spokesperson for Slotkin, a false threat was emailed to a local official. Slotkin was not home when the swatting occurred, and no one was harmed. 

“This is the latest in a disturbing trend of swatting incidents targeting members of Congress,” Mukomel said. “Congresswomen Slotkin is deeply grateful for the swift and professional response by law enforcement to this unfortunate incident, and that U.S. Capitol Police will be following up to investigate and hopefully hold accountable those responsible.” 

The following day, another false report was made, prompting police to respond to a home connected to Representative Rogers in Genoa Township. According to Chris Gustafson, Rogers’ family members were the targets for the swatting, and no one was harmed. 

“Mike and his family are beyond grateful for the professionalism and swift response of law enforcement,” Gustafson said. “This is the second time that Mike has been the target of swatting, first in 2013 as a member of Congress, and reports that Rep. Slotkin was also the target yesterday are a clear example of the deeply concerning trend of political violence that has quickly become the norm. 

“This kind of violence cannot be tolerated, and it is our hope that those responsible will be quickly prosecuted and held accountable.” 

According to the Anti-Defamation League, there are almost 1,000 swatting incidents every year in the United States. The FBI has recently formed a task force to combat these dangerous and even deadly fake reports. Swatting can get the perpetrator up to 20 years in prison, and fines of thousands of dollars.