Left: Miranda Perez (Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office). Right: President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington (AP Photo/Alex Brandon).
The case of a southern Florida woman accused of threatening to shoot President Donald Trump because she was "bored" will continue, despite the defense's attempt to force the proceedings to halt completely.
Miranda Perez was found competent enough for her case to proceed in Palm Beach County, Florida, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show. She stands charged with making a written or electronic threat to kill or cause bodily harm to another person.
Perez was 34 years old when she allegedly posted a threat on Facebook on July 14. The post read: "Hey Trump I'ma go to your Gulf course an be the next shooter lol I'm bored." It also stated "be there soon," alongside a smiling-face emoji.
The post included a laughing emoji as well as an emoji of hands raised in the air — generally used to express enthusiasm, as Law&Crime previously reported. She was subsequently arrested.
Authorities said they tied the profile to Perez because of several photos on the Facebook page matching her state ID, as well as the social media photos matching her "previous booking photo when she was arrested for making threats on Facebook to shoot up" a local elementary school. That case stretches back to August 2019.
A probable cause affidavit at the time detailed how a man contacted authorities after speaking with a woman — allegedly Perez — on Facebook Messenger. She was reportedly upset that her children were being moved to a new school.
The witness and the woman spoke on video chat, his sworn statements said, so he was clear who he was talking with. She allegedly stated that because she likes "violent things," she intended to add Zachary Cruz as a Facebook friend, whose brother Nikolas Cruz was convicted of massacring 17 students and staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in February 2018. Perez allegedly referenced Nikolas Cruz, too.
After their video chat, Perez reportedly messaged the witness: "I'm thinking of doing a school shooting at Barton," a reference to Barton Elementary School in Palm Beach County, Florida, the school where her children were being moved.
"WTF," the man responded.
"Yep," she allegedly replied, saying it was their "fault."
The court record continued by stating Perez later "confirmed" to authorities that she sent those messages and admitted that she did think about the crime, "but claimed she would never actually do it." She was charged with making a threat to conduct a mass shooting.
Perez was later found to be "seriously mentally ill" and ordered to surrender all firearms and ammunition she owned. She was deemed incompetent to stand trial in 2019, according to court records. Two years later, her lawyers moved to dismiss the case, arguing that based on Supreme Court precedent, Perez should not be prosecuted when it is clear she would not regain competency to stand trial. The judge, over the state's objection, agreed to dismiss the case.
In the recent case regarding an alleged threat to hurt Trump, however, Perez was found to be competent after doctors observed her. Her case will continue, and a status check has been scheduled for Jan. 5, 2026.
She has pleaded not guilty.
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