Judge orders competency evaluation for man accused of Trump threats in Apex

A federal judge has ordered a psychiatric or psychological competency evaluation for Daniel Swain, the 41-year-old man accused of threatening President Donald Trump after messages were found on his SUV at an Apex car wash. The order puts the Eastern District of North Carolina on hold at a threshold stage: before the felony case can move ahead, the court must decide whether Swain understands the proceedings and can help defend himself.

The reported incident unfolded April 29 at the Tidal Wave Auto Spa at 1950 Lake Pine Drive in Apex, where police said the first call came in around 2:20 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Concerned citizens alerted authorities after seeing the message “HEADED TO WSH TO KILL THE PRES” written in white marker on the driver-side window of Swain’s BMW X5, and investigators also reported another message reading “TELL DONALD HE IS FIRED.” Apex police evacuated the car wash, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation sent a bomb squad and a robot to search the SUV. The Secret Service, FBI and SBI all assisted.

Federal prosecutors charged Swain under 18 U.S.C. § 871(a), the federal threat statute covering threats against the president. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison if he is convicted, and it identified Assistant U.S. Attorney Logan Liles as the prosecutor. Swain, whose federal records list him as being from Summerville, South Carolina, was arrested by the Secret Service on a federal warrant in Apex.

On June 1, defense counsel asked for a psychiatric and psychological evaluation, saying there was reason to believe Swain may be suffering from a mental disease or defect affecting competency. U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III, who sits in Raleigh, granted the request on June 5. The examination is being handled under 18 U.S.C. § 4241, which allows a court to order an evaluation when there is reasonable cause to question whether a defendant can understand the case and assist counsel. The resulting report is to be shared with court officials by June 20, but it will not be public.

The competency ruling does not decide whether Swain made the threats. It only addresses whether the case can proceed in a courtroom at all, a distinction that now matters as much in Wake County as the original security scare did at the car wash. CBS 17 reported that Swain also faced local charges including resisting a public officer, possession of methamphetamine and a fictitious license plate, with a $10,000 secured bond on the Apex charges and a Secret Service detainer keeping him jailed. Court records cited by CBS 17 said defense counsel sought evaluation at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, and a federal arraignment was listed for July 20 in Raleigh.